A young girl and her grandparents visiting the Kennedy Center scored front row seats to an unexpected adventure Sunday: being hoisted out of stranded elevator.
The elevator stalled between floors under the Kennedy Center’s terrace level before a Sunday afternoon show, requiring specialized rescue crews to rappel 30 feet down a shaft to make contact with the family.
“While most elevator rescues are fairly simple operations, this was more significant, because this elevator was in what we call a ‘blind shaft,’ not easily reachable by ordinary means,” D.C. Fire & EMS spokesman Vito Maggiolo told WTOP.
Over the course of an hour, the three were lifted to safety using a harness and pulley system designed for operating in a confined space.
#DCsBravest have successfully rescued the 2 adults & 1 child who were in stalled elevator 30 feet below elevator entrance @kencen. All are in excellent condition and had quite an adventure being hauled to safety. pic.twitter.com/on5emijEtq
— DC Fire and EMS (@dcfireems) August 18, 2019
Medical personnel found them all to be in excellent condition, requiring no further medical attention.
The child’s mother later tweeted her thanks to rescue teams, saying her daughter and parents were about to attend a performance of “Aladdin.”
“So grateful for your help! Too bad they missed the show,” she said.
“While they didn’t get to see the magic carpet, they got a unique ride of their own,” Maggiolo said. “We’re happy that we were able to go them to safety unharmed, and it’s the kind of unique rescue that our special operations teams are trained for.”
