A woman trapped 80 feet below inside an elevator at the Friendship Heights Metro Station on Saturday required D.C. Fire and EMS to rappel deep into a shaft to make the rescue possible.
According to a tweet from D.C. Fire and EMS, the woman was stuck in a “blind shaft” with no way out by regular means, such as a nearby door opening at a given level.
Spokesman Vito Maggiolo said first responders used ropes to lower themselves down into the elevator shaft to complete the rescue.
Images from the technical rescue at the Friendship Heights Metro Station. #DCsBravest rappelled down 80 feet below grade to assist a woman from a stalled elevator. She was then lifted to safety using ropes and a hauling mechanism, and was uninjured. pic.twitter.com/eN2OB3FonA
— DC Fire and EMS (@dcfireems) August 30, 2020
“You have to secure an individual who doesn’t have any experience in this kind of situation, assure her of her safety, and then bring her 80 feet back up to safety,” Maggiolo said. “It is an involved process.”
The woman had no injuries and did not require any additional treatment.
Here is a map of where the rescue occurred.
WTOP’s Matthew Delaney contributed to this story.
