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Man hurt when he rolls wheelchair into shaft, falls to elevator roof

Patient at rehab center said he thought darkened car awaited when he opened elevator door

By Phil Trexler Beacon Journal staff writer

Published on Friday, Oct 12, 2007

William Hathaway has had more than his share of bad luck over the past 16 months.

First, a car crash left him partially paralyzed in June 2006 and forced him to use a wheelchair.

Then, while at a rehab facility in Akron early Wednesday, Hathaway wheeled into an elevator shaft and fell, crashing into the roof of a rising elevator.

While the elevator continued to operate, the only thing rising inside of Hathaway was his voice and heart rate.

''I started screaming the whole time for somebody to stop the elevator, but it was like no one knew where I was,'' Hathaway, 43, of Akron, said in a phone interview from his hospital bed at Akron General Medical Center.

''As it was going up, all I could see was the ceiling getting closer to me and I thought this was it; I was going to be squashed. I thought it was it for me.''

Aides at the Bridgepark Center for Rehabilitation and Nursing Services on Olive Street stopped the elevator at the fourth floor.

Akron police and firefighters arrived after being called at about 2:50 a.m. An elevator technician was also called.

To veteran firefighters, the sight of someone above an elevator car was more than unique.

''You just don't see that,'' said Ed Sturkey, the fire department's public information officer. ''We get calls all the time with people trapped inside an elevator. But in my almost 29 years, I've never seen or heard of someone stuck on top.''

Hathaway wouldn't be freed for more than an hour as firefighters called in their technical rescue team to evaluate the situation and devise a plan.

Eventually, a Schindler Elevator Corp. worker was able to lower the car manually and firefighters rescued Hathaway from the roof of the car, Sturkey said. A person inside the car was not injured. The center's two elevators had been the subject of a complaint sent to the Ohio Department of Health on Aug. 16, Sara Morman, a department spokeswoman, said Thursday.

The complaint alleged that one of two broken elevators used by patients was never repaired. But Morman said the complaint was unsubstantiated and both elevators were working when inspected.

Hathaway said the elevator had been repaired and operating the last six weeks or so.

Bridgepark officials released a statement Thursday saying the elevator had been inspected by the Ohio Department of Commerce after Hathaway's fall and that it appeared to be operating normally.

The investigation remains open and the company is cooperating, the statement said. Officials cited resident confidentiality as their reason for not being able to comment further.

Hathaway remains hospitalized with fractured ribs and bruises all over his body. After making some progress toward walking again following his car crash, he is unable to move, he said.

''Before this happened, I was easygoing. I could hop in my wheelchair and get around. Now, I can't get moving and I'm stuck in this bed,'' Hathaway said.

His nightmarish ride began early Wednesday morning after retrieving a jacket from his third-floor room. He planned to return to the first floor to continue a visit with another patient.

Once back at the elevator, he said, he noticed its door was slightly ajar. He said he slipped his hand between the doors and they opened. He thought a darkened car awaited, he said.

But as he wheeled himself inside the doors, he noticed the car wasn't there. However, he said, his front wheelchair tire had crossed the elevator door threshold and it was too late to stop.

He said momentum and gravity took him and his wheelchair two floors down, crashing onto the roof of the elevator car.

''It knocked the wind out of me and I was trying to get my bearings straight,'' he said.

He said he could hear the elevator starting to rise, but apparently no one heard his screams.

''I was scared. I was really, really scared, to be honest with you,'' he said.

Phil Trexler can be reached at 330-996-3717 or ptrexler@thebeaconjournal.com.

William Hathaway has had more than his share of bad luck over the past 16 months.

Get the full article here.


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