Lift plunges after Chinese tour group push and shove their way in

[madusa]

26 minutes ago, Arkady said:

I was once in an ancient hotel lift that collapsed on to its springs a floor and a half  in Salonika in Northern Greece.  It dropped quite slowly and luckily no one was hurt but what was scary was the panic of the elderly Greek women dressed in widow's weeds as it fell and when we were stuck at the bottom of the lift shaft for 40 minutes.

I love ancient Greece. You lucky man for Apollo and Delphi have shown you grace.

[thaibeachlovers]

4 hours ago, Just1Voice said:

I tend to avoid escalators and elevators in Thailand whenever possible. lol

 

Why escalators? In LOS they aren't made of wood, so they don't burst into flames and kill lots of people like happened in the London Tube some years ago. Worst that happens is they stop moving.

[4MyEgo]

8 minutes ago, madusa said:

I think this photo was taken in the train not lift. Am I right?

I could tell a white lie and say it was taken at the breakfast bar of the place we stayed at, i.e. Novotel Vintage Park Resort Phuket, but the Chinese security uniforms give it away 555

[Dibbler]

4 hours ago, nahkit said:

What about the first few people that got in, i.e. before the lift became unsafe, does 'som nam na' apply to them as well?

Yes 'som nam na na khrap' because if they should have kicked out the last 5 of their friends that tried to get in when the alarm buzzer started going off.

[impulse]

4 hours ago, KittenKong said:

Put 15 people into an elevator designed for 10 and it should be pretty obvious that it's overloaded. And how stupid do you need to be not to understand a warning buzzer, or to ignore it?

 

If you've ever waited in China for an elevator, you'd understand their zeal to pack themselves in.  I've waited half an hour for a hospital elevator on many occasions in China when 3 of the 4 lifts are out of service or being bogarted for VIP's.  The wait could be an hour if we didn't pack ourselves in, and lots of passengers in a hospital don't have the option of climbing 10 flights of stairs.

 

Certainly not smart to overload one, but I can understand why they'd get into that habit.  And regardless of how they overloaded it, the built in protections should not have allowed anyone to be injured.  Buzz, flash, stop working, sure.  But any injuries are a fail on the part of the safety systems.

 

[observer90210]

Quite disturbing to see some gloat on the misfortune of the chinese tourists who could have got killed.

 

Ok you don't like the Chinese, I myself find, some of them,  sometimes,  rude and uncivilised ....but is that a reason to think all the Chinese are the same?  Is that a reason to glee on their misfortune and have a laugh when people almost get killed ? 

 

Laughing at others misfortune is just as uncouth and low, as the people you are stigmatizing.

 

The hotel should be fully downgraded for providing life hazard lifts in its premises and deserves to plainly get shut down to serve as a exemple.

 

How would you like to fall down in such a hazardous situation ?

[Foozool]

4 hours ago, samsensam said:

 

i'm no engineer but common sense would suggest lifts have a fail safe mechanism so in the event of overloading/malfunction a brake is applied so the lift will not move?

If you read news, brake failure is very common in Thailand especially in car accidents. 

?

[wvavin]

They forgot to install the turbo mode!

[sammieuk1]

15 Average Chinese = 7 average  Americans don't use the lift in this hotel.

[Dante99]

1 hour ago, BuddyDean said:

Wouldn't a true five star hotel have an elevator operator?  Perhaps he was busy in pursuit of a guest bringing a guest to his room.

No they do not.

[Rangerdriver]

Lifts cannot plunge to the ground if all safety systems are fitted, maintained and working correctly.

Sent from my ASUS_Z002 using Thailand Forum - Thaivisa mobile app

[pacovl46]

5 hours ago, KittenKong said:

 

They do. There will be an audible alarm if the maximum weight is exceeded and the lift will not work. But if you overload the lift enough then the cable will break and the lift will fall a short distance before the safety lock kicks in. This also happens if the lift speed exceeds a specific maximum for whatever reason.

 

It seems that this is what happened in this case.

 

These Chinese people are still idiots though. Talk about born in a barn. Born on the floor of a barn more likely.

 

Yeah, but there's a safety regulation for the cables of a lift. If I remember correctly they have to hold 10 times more weight then the maximum allowed load, so this shouldn't have happened! 

[Rangerdriver]

I hope the lift is repaired promptly so as not to cause much convenience to sensible users.

Sent from my ASUS_Z002 using Thailand Forum - Thaivisa mobile app

[Ricardo]

They should have paid the usual fee, for a bungee-jump experience, rather than trying to get a free ride ! 

[shackleton]

I have mentioned in here before about the lifts weight capacity in hotels shopping malls Condos ect

The lifts  mention numbers and total weight allowed

When was this average weight  last taken considering a. Lot of people are now heavier to life style 

maybe needs looking at 

[FatVern]

Love the Chinese but they do not like to split their groups for any reason! 

[Gandtee]

5 hours ago, KittenKong said:

 

Put 15 people into an elevator designed for 10 and it should be pretty obvious that it's overloaded. And how stupid do you need to be not to understand a warning buzzer, or to ignore it?

Are lifts now being designed to accommodate the modern average weight. 15 Chinese would not weigh as much as 10 Westerners I would think. Life is just a series of ups and downs. 

[FitnessHealthTravel]

This is so normal. I had to push them out of the Shanghai Metro when they'd try and squash in. Horrendous breath, bad body odor and groping and stealing were all incentives to ride a bicycle. Yes, pollution, bad driving etc etc. Take your pick...oh wait...drunk cabbies too

[sambum]

6 hours ago, darksidedog said:

Som nam na. Stupidity and impatience have a price.

The hotel operator should give them the bill for the repairs.

Glad  you got the first reply in to this post - your first 3 words say it all! Perhaps the departing Minister for Tourism should shoulder the blame for attracting so many "Quality Tourists"?

[sambum]

3 minutes ago, Gandtee said:

Are lifts now being designed to accommodate the modern average weight. 15 Chinese would not weigh as much as 10 Westerners I would think. Life is just a series of ups and downs. 

Probably take up as much space!

[Eddy1960]

Myths About Elevators:

 

Common Elevator Myths and Truths:

 

There are many myths and misconceptions about elevators. This is because the majority of all elevator equipment is hidden from public view, which thus leaves much to the imagination of a passenger.

 

The following are some of the most common myths and their corresponding truths:

 

MYTH - Many people believe elevators are held up by only one rope that can break, leaving passengers in a free falling car.

 

TRUTH - Elevators are supported by multiple steel cables. Each cable alone can support a fully loaded car. The only elevator fall due to a complete cable system failure occurred during the 1940’s when an airplane crashed into the empire state building and severed all the cables on a particular elevator.

 

MYTH - Some people believe that an overcrowded elevator will fall.

 

TRUTH - An overloaded car will normally not move. The doors will stay open and a buzzer may ring until enough people get off of the elevator to reduce the weight.

 

MYTH - Some people have claimed that they have been in an elevator that fell several floors and then “caught itself”.

 

TRUTH - This feeling is a mystery. Elevator experts believe people may think this has happened as a result of the following:

1. They boarded an elevator that was traveling in the opposite direction they thought it was traveling.

2. They saw the elevator floor indicator lights flash by quickly which gave the visual impression of falling.

MYTH - Some people believe the hall doors will open when an elevator is not there.

 

TRUTH - The elevator is designed so that the car controls the opening of the hall door. When the car arrives at a landing, the car door engages the hall door and the car door operator then opens both sets of doors. If the car is not at the landing, it cannot trigger the hall doors to open.

 

MYTH - Some people believe that if an elevator is stuck between floors that they are in danger of falling and should try to get out.

 

TRUTH - Attempting to leave the car on your own could result in serious injury. Elevator cars are designed to be “safe rooms”, and the safest place is inside the car. You should ring the alarm and utilize the emergency telephone if the elevator is equipped with one. You should only leave the car with the assistance of professional rescue personnel.

 

Harmless elevator myths and truths:

 

MYTH - Pushing the call button repeatedly will make the elevator come faster.

 

TRUTH - Once the call button is pressed, the call is registered by the elevator controller. Pressing the call button again does nothing.

 

MYTH - Pushing the Door Close button will close the door faster.

 

TRUTH - It may cause the doors to close sooner but not faster. If a buzzer the sounds, the doors may actually close slower.

 

[Rimmer]

A number of unnecessary racist troll posts have been removed, please see the following forum rule:

 

11) You will not post slurs, degrading or overly negative comments directed towards Thailand, specific locations, Thai institutions such as the judicial or law enforcement system, Thai culture, Thai people or any other group on the basis of race, nationality, religion, gender or sexual orientation.
 

 

[speckio]

5 hours ago, emanphoto said:

In Japan the elevators sound a warning and will not move if overloaded.

they do the same thing should occur Thailand.. as soon as the limit is hit an alarm will go off and will continue to beep or make a sound and will not move until the excess weight is removed.. all floors pushed will reset and must be pressed again also. 

 

not sure what actually occurred but i think they simply tried to ignore the warning... or someone skipped some safety measures during construction to save a few bucks... probably the latter

[speckio]

4 hours ago, petedk said:

Why?

 

It isn't only Chinese that cram into lifts.

I have been in many lifts in Thailand where they cram as many people in as possible. It seems there is "always room for one more" even though the alarm rings. I must admit I get worried sometimes.

i have never come across what you speak off... i always see people patiently waiting for the next lift if its even remotely full. 

 

[slippery snake]

Warning buzzer ???  Thought that was someone's phone...

If you ever been in the subway in China at rush hour.. that is pretty common stuff..

Must have got confused and thought that was the last train..  

 

[britishrepublican]

That' what the Chinese do. They push and shove like cattle with absolutely no regard for other members of the public. I once went to the grand palace and it was ruined by Chinese tourists doing the same thing. Cattle treat each other better than the Chinese treat strangers. 

[dinsdale]

6 hours ago, Thian said:

And what if the instructions how to use the lift were not written in chinese characters and the tourists couldn't read english?

Well here's one in Chinese and I understand what it means. 4 persons max. Numerals in the lift would be roman numerals which is universal.

 

 

[NanLaew]

6 hours ago, lonewolf99 said:

Reminds me of when I was "on the tools" working  with Indians and Arabs. I could get 3 or 4 more turns on a bolt, nut or screw more than any of them.

Nothing quite like the old maxim when asked how much to tighten something, of "Strip it out and then back it off half-a-turn."

[xerostar]

Make the floors of lifts transparent. That way more people will use the stairs and solve the problem of overcrowding.

Sent from my SM-N915F using Thailand Forum - Thaivisa mobile app

[Essaybloke]

Thai media reported that several Chinese people were injured when an overloaded lift plunged after a tour group returned from a day out at a plush Chiang Mai hotel.

 

Cringe-worthily bad syntax in this sentence. Did the Chinese people really have a day out at a plush Chiang Mai hotel? Or a day out somewhere around the city, and they returned to said hotel?  And does it matter that they were Chinese?