Citation

Prahlow JA, Ashraf Z, Plaza N, Rogers C, Ferreira P, Fowler DR, Blessing MM, Wolf DA, Graham MA, Sandberg K, Brown TT, Lantz PE. J. Forensic Sci. 2019; ePub(ePub): ePub.

Affiliation

Department of Pathology, Wake Forest University School of Medicine, Medical Center Blvd., Winston-Salem, NC, 27157.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2019, American Society for Testing and Materials, Publisher John Wiley and Sons)

DOI

10.1111/1556-4029.14235

PMID

31703160

Abstract

Elevators are mechanical transportation devices used to move vertically between different levels of a building. When first developed, elevators lacked the safety features. When safety mechanisms were developed, elevators became a common feature of multistory buildings. Despite their well-regarded safety record, elevators are not without the potential for danger of injury or death. Persons at-risk for elevator-related death include maintenance and construction workers, other employees, and those who are prone to risky behavior. Deaths may be related to asphyxia, blunt force, avulsion injuries, and various forms of environmental trauma. In this review, we report on 48 elevator-related deaths that occurred in nine different medicolegal death investigation jurisdictions within the United States over an approximately 30-year period. The data represents a cross-section of the different types of elevator-related deaths that may be encountered. The review also presents an overview of preventive strategies for the purpose of avoiding future elevator-related fatalities.

© 2019 American Academy of Forensic Sciences.

Language: en

Keywords

death; death investigation; elevator; forensic pathology; forensic science; injury prevention