In a shocking incident in Kerala, a 59-year-old man Ravindran Nair was trapped in an elevator at the Government Medical College Hospital in Thiruvananthapuram for two days. However, the officials in charge of lift’s operation were unaware of the incident until Monday (15th July) morning. After this, the authorities took disciplinary action against the operators for the alleged lapses.
Ravindran Nair, an Ulloor resident who came for a medical checkup, had been stuck inside the lift of the OP Block of the government medical college since Saturday (13th July) until being rescued by an operator who had arrived for work. The 59-year-old man has been admitted to the hospital for a medical checkup.
“Ravindran Nair got into the lift to go to the first floor but claims that the lift came down and did not open. He says he shouted for help, but no one came. His phone was also switched off,” the police said.
On Saturday, the victim’s family lodged a missing person complaint at the Medical College police station after Nair’s phone was also not reachable
Meanwhile, State Health Minister Veena George has ordered an investigation into the incident and sought a report on the matter. In addition, the health department has suspended three employees in connection with the incident: two lift operators and a duty sergeant. According to officials, the event occurred on Monday morning, when the lift operator arrived for usual work.
Nair told the media that the lift got stuck at around 12 noon on Saturday, July 13, and he kept pressing the alarm, however, no one came to help. He also tried calling emergency numbers from inside the lift, but no one answered.
“I tried calling all the emergency numbers listed inside the lift, but no one answered. The alarm was also sounded, but no one came. After some time, I understood that it was the second Saturday and a Sunday the next day, and then I waited for help. Later, I lost track of time inside the lift. This morning [Monday], an operator came, and I pressed the alarm. We both forcefully opened the door from both sides, and I jumped out of it,” Ravindran Nair said adding that he was sure that someone will operate the lift on Monday morning.
“My father says he kept on ringing the alarm inside the lift, but no one came to the rescue,” Hari Shankar, son of Ravindran Nair said.
Meanwhile, the Medical College authorities have maintained that the lift, Nair was stuck into for two days, was not regularly used.
