One person was killed and 12 people were rescued after being trapped for about six hours at the bottom of a former Colorado gold mine when an elevator malfunctioned at the tourist site, authorities said.
The elevator was descending into the Mollie Kathleen Gold Mine near the town of Cripple Creek when it had a mechanical problem around 500 feet (152 meters) beneath the surface, creating a “severe danger for the participants,” Teller County Sheriff Jason Mikesell said.
The 12 adults who were trapped about 1,000 feet (305 meters) below ground had access to water and used radios to communicate with authorities, who told them there was an elevator issue, Mikesell said.
It’s possible, but it’s the least likely scenario. Modern elevators rarely crash down. They actually tend to crash up when there is a failure, which is very, very rare. There are a lot of safety mechanisms in place to prevent an elevator freefall. It’s occurred less than ten times in like 80 years, and several of those were during construction.
It’s not impossible, but that scenario is exceedingly rare.
We’re talking about an old elevator in a mineshaft, not some fancy hotel elevator.
I wouldn’t call it modern.
Edit: That rusty orange box on a hook is the elevator
Nothing would get me into this thing, and I’m not even claustrophobic. It just looks unsafe.
Lol nevermind I’m shocked this doesn’t happen weekly Jesus christ