The full report is out regarding last month’s gory elevator incident in which an elderly woman’s hand was completely severed from her arm.
The authorised examiner (AE) has looked into the incident that occured at a HDB lift along Tah Ching Road — and surprisingly, it was ruled that the lift had not malfunctioned at all.
After reviewing all the evidence, CCTV footage, specialist medical reports and interviews — as well as inspections and simulations — the AE found that the 85-year-old Khoo Bee Hua’s traumatic injury was a self-inflicted one. Her hand had been severed as it was pulled by the leash through the lift cabin doors when they closed while her dog was still outside. Here are some illustrations courtesy of the Building and Construction Authority (BCA) showing how it happened.
The severed hand itself was found at the bottom of the lift pit when the dog leash was eventually cut by neighbours. The surgery to reattach the hand was unsuccessful.
“The door protective devices cannot be proven reasonably to have failed to function properly on the day of incident as it was clear that during the evacuation operations conducted by SCDF, the lift doors had clearly responded to obstructions several times when SCDF officers were in the door way at 07:26 hrs, time stamped by Police CCTV footage,” BCA noted. “They were further tested by AE following the incident and confirmed that they worked according to their specifications. ”
What the AE has recommended post-investigation is that efforts should be stepped up to educate the public on safe usage of lifts, and possibly review settings of various safety devices in them.
“BCA has updated Mdm Khoo’s immediate family members of the findings of the investigations. The Tah Ching Road lift incident is a very unfortunate one. We are saddened by what has happened to Mdm Khoo and hope that she recovers well from this traumatic experience.
Photo: spablab via Flickr; BCA newsroom
