Elevators & Kids -- a warning

[cgcw]

I took the kids to see the Easter Bunny this morning at the mall.

Afterwards, we were going to throw coins in the fountain. We needed to go down the elevator to get there. On our way out of the elevator, though, the 18 month old I care for put his hand on the elevator door. The door proceeded to continue to open, going into place with his hand and fingers trapped inside. I saw it happening and there was nothing I could do to stop it. I started yelling for help and all of the sudden these work men were around us, trying to get the little guys hand free. The door wasn't budging. Finally, one of the workmen pulled the elevator door open and was able to free the little guys fingers and hand. The hand was pretty mangled up and bleeding, the fingers were crushed down to the bone, leaving a deep impression. Security at the mall was great as far as on top of things. As we were leaving to go to the emergency room, security was already talking about the safety issue of the door and testing it out.

The good news is that x-rays revealed there were no broken bones. They cleaned the hand really well, but there is still a pretty nasty looking wound. The fingers have returned back to the normal shape but look at bit swollen and red. It was an experience I don't want to ever repeat. From now on, the kids will be at the back of the elevator until the door is all the way open.

 

[Mermaid02]

Your warning is a good one! A little boy (age about 7 I believe) was actually killed when he was caught in an old elevator at the Bethel Inn here in Maine a couple of summers ago. Elevators and escalators can be VERY dangerous!!

 

[dandave]

Glad to hear there were no broken bones. Elevators and escalators both scare me.

 

[CamColt]

Oh My Goodness! How horrible for that child(and you) to experience that. Im so glad everything will be ok.
And thanks for that warning. I never would have thought of that, and with DS still in a stroller, we are forced to take the elevator at the mall a lot.

 

[olena]

Oh, the poor little guy!

 

[preshi]

how awful!!! They usually have those bars between the inner and outer part of the door so if you push it it will open back up... maybe there just wasnt enough pressure with such a little hand

 

[disykat]

Thanks for the warning! It's so easy to watch the opening, but forget that the whole door moves. I'm feeling queezy just thinking about all the times my kids could have done the same thing. I'm glad he's okay!

 

[jamsmom]

That is scary! Glad there were no broken bones.

 

[Snowwark]

I'm glad the little guy is okay. How frightening, for both of you!

 

[Mishetta]

What a scary thing for both of you to go through. So glad this had a happy ending. Most of all, thank you so much for the warning. I would never have thought of this danger!

(Now go have a stiff drink! I'm sure you've earned it!)

 

[Pugdog007]

Wow. This reminds me of when I was a kid, my sister's arm was slammed in the monorail at WDW. The guys came by closing so fast and her arm was caught. She was screaming and they opened it up fairly quickly but she was hurt.

I haven't heard of that happening in a long time though. It was in the early days of the monorail... 70's.

 

[helenabear]

Oh the poor little guy I had my hand smashed in a car door once right along my knuckles. It looked terrible for a long time. I hope his hand feels better soon!

 

[Serena]

Poor thing, poor you. That had to be awful. I'm glad he'll be alright though.

 

[Dan Murphy]

Wow. Scary for sure, Cindy. Hope the little guy feels okay. Good tip.

 

[robinb]

Poor kid! My DD stuck her hand in an elevator door in Lyon, France a few days before her 3rd birthday. This was after she tried it a half a dozen times and each time I told her not to do it . She learned her lesson the hard way. Luckily, I was able to yank her hand out and she wasn't bloody ... just a couple of indentations on her fingers. That was 6 months ago and "remember when the elevator bit your fingers?" stops her from doing other dangerous things a lot quicker.

 

[KimRaye]

Oh Cindy! You must have been terrified! {HUGS} for you and the little guy!

This story reminded me of all the garage door accidents, too.

 

[ChibiJones]

This reminds me of a news story I heard several years ago. A small child was riding an escalator. She was pressing her foot against the side of the escalator & it got caught it the gap. Unfortunately she suffered pretty serious injuries

My dad got stuck on an escalator as a child. He decided to sit down & didn't get up in time. I think he just got his pants ripped though, maybe a pinched tush. He never let us sit on the escalator though so that's one life lesson that stuck with him.

I hope your little one feels better.