The elevator suddenly fell! How to start "self-rescue"?

Image source: Tuchong Creative

If you often take the elevator, have you ever been afraid of... the elevator suddenly falling? Don't worry, you are not alone.

Modern elevators have a history of 150 years. During this period, there have been about 800 billion rides, with a total of 1.3 trillion passengers. Most of these people have imagined that they would die "heroically" in an elevator fall.

So, is there a high chance that the elevator will fall to the bottom of the shaft? If you encounter an elevator failure, how can you save yourself?

The elevator car is usually pulled by steel cables. For safety reasons, modern elevators have three steel cables pulling the car at the same time. In theory, only one cable is needed to bear the weight of the entire elevator car. Therefore, even if one steel cable breaks accidentally, the other two can ensure the safety of the car.

If three cables break, the elevator's overspeed protection device will be activated in time. It consists of three parts: speed limiter, safety clamp, and tensioner. Each elevator has a rated speed limit. When the elevator speed exceeds 115% of the rated speed, the speed limiter installed in the machine room on the top floor will trigger the overspeed electrical switch, causing the working brake to lock due to power failure.

If the car speed increases further and exceeds 125% of the rated speed, the speed limiter wire rope will be braked, pulling the safety clamp under the car to clamp the guide rail and stop the car.

Therefore, it is almost impossible for the elevator car to fall completely to the bottom of the shaft. Even if the elevator cable breaks completely, the people in the elevator are safe.

In addition, there is a hydraulic buffer device at the bottom of the elevator shaft. Even if the car falls to the ground, the buffer device can be automatically triggered, making the car fall on cotton, minimizing the damage to passengers.

So, when an elevator accident occurs, how can we save ourselves?

First of all, a key warning! When you are trapped in an elevator, whether you are stuck between two floors or not, never force the door open! There is a certain gap between the car and the edge of the shaft, and the initial regulation is 15 cm. However, because some people have forced the door open when an accident occurred, there have been accidents where people were squeezed in the gap and struggled to fall. The gap distance has now been changed to 10 cm. So please remember that forcibly opening the door may make it easier to fall into the elevator shaft, which is fatal.

There is also a saying that when the elevator falls, as long as you jump suddenly at the moment of falling, you can save your life. This topic has caused a lot of controversy online. But in reality, people cannot jump up in a state of weightlessness. The most important thing is that the internal force cannot change the external effect, so no matter how high you jump in the car, it will not help...

The correct operation is to press all buttons, including the alarm device, immediately when encountering an elevator failure, to ensure that the elevator activates the emergency brake device as soon as possible. Next, if the elevator continues to fall, if possible, you should retreat to a corner, with your back and arms against the wall, and keep your knees bent. When the situation stabilizes, immediately call 119, 120 or the maintenance personnel and wait for rescue. Never force yourself to take blind self-rescue actions without any professional knowledge.

Serious reminder: The scenes in the movie are all performances. Please do not imitate dangerous actions. If a mortal imitates Spider-Man, it may be fatal.

China Science and Technology Press