What to Do If You Are Stuck in an Elevator

An elevator that stops between floors is unsettling, even though it is usually only a delay. This page sets out what public safety bodies and an industry association tell passengers to do, why those steps make sense, and who is working on the other side of the door. It is educational only, it cannot replace instructions posted in the car or given by building staff, and rules differ by jurisdiction. In any real emergency, use the car's emergency phone or alarm and contact emergency services.

Never try to pry the doors open or climb out. Every source below says to wait for trained responders, and the sections that follow explain the reasons.

Stay calm and stay inside

The New York City Department of Buildings reduces the advice to three short rules: ring the alarm, relax because help is on the way, and wait without prying open the doors. Technical Safety BC, a Canadian regulator, suggests slow, deep breaths and says that in most cases the door will open in a few minutes. NEII, the National Elevator Industry, Inc., puts it simply: relax and wait for assistance.

Why stay put? A car that has stopped may be able to start moving again. Technical Safety BC warns that a stuck car "could start moving again at any time." The NYC page adds a small, practical tip: while waiting, stand at the rear center of the car facing the doors.

The first steps the guidance describes

NEII's stalled-elevator guidance, published as a press release in January 2016, starts with the door-open button. If the car is at a landing (a floor where the doors can open), the doors should open, and riders should step out slowly because the car may not be level with the floor. If the doors do not open, it advises pushing the phone button and waiting for a response. Newer cars may label the button "HELP". A car that has only an "ALARM" button sounds a building alarm, and trained personnel should reach the passenger when they arrive.

Technical Safety BC adds a fallback for the case where nobody answers the phone or bell. If you have a cell phone, it says to call 911, and with no phone and no response, shout so people in the building can hear. That is a second line, and the car's own phone or alarm comes first.

How the emergency phone works

The Wisconsin Department of Safety and Professional Services describes what the phone is required to do under the rules it enforces. One push of a button should start a call that tells the answering party the building and elevator location, and the call should reach authorized personnel rather than an answering system that makes a caller sit through prompts. If no one is reached within 45 seconds, the call must be redirected to another location. A visual signal in the car shows that the call has been established, which helps passengers who cannot hear.

Elevators are also required to check automatically, at least daily, that the two-way voice link works, and the department says the system must switch to alternate power that can run it for at least 4 hours. These are Wisconsin's summaries of national and state rules, and requirements differ by place and by the age of the equipment. The department makes a second point that matters here: voice contact lets responders give passengers information that can prevent a dangerous, even fatal, attempt at self-rescue. The phone is a lifeline in a literal sense, so use it.

What about air?

Two sources address ventilation directly. NEII says there is plenty of air circulating in the elevator and its hoistway (the vertical shaft the car runs in), even if the car feels warm. Technical Safety BC says the car is equipped with ventilation. A warm, stuffy feeling is common when people are anxious, but neither source suggests the supply will run out.

Why you should never force the doors or climb out

The sources are blunt. NEII says never to attempt to open the door manually and not to leave the car unless it has returned to a landing and opened its doors on its own. Technical Safety BC says not to climb out through ceiling hatches or force the doors, and warns that banging or kicking the doors can damage the elevator and make it harder for maintenance personnel to get you out.

The danger is real because the hoistway is built for machinery, not people. The Massachusetts government elevator rescue training materials we read say that the danger of an unattended open hoistway is one of the most common causes of elevator fatalities, and that a car in a shaft with an opening may sit above or below the opening. That is why even trained responders are taught strict procedures. We do not describe those procedures here, and no rider should attempt them.

Who comes to help

The NYC Department of Buildings says that building management gives instructions and helps with exits, while emergency responders such as police or fire rescue assist with stalled elevators. It reserves 911 for life-threatening emergencies and 311 for concerns about elevator or escalator operation. Technical Safety BC says maintenance personnel get stuck passengers out.

The Massachusetts training materials, written for firefighters, show how cautious rescuers are. They say that whenever possible, occupants should be left in the car until a licensed elevator mechanic arrives, because passengers are, in their words, only locked in a box and still safe. They also say that power must be disconnected in the machine room before any attempt to remove a passenger, and that only a licensed mechanic should perform lockout and tagout, a documented procedure that prevents the equipment from restarting. If someone in the car is ill or injured, that changes the urgency, so report it plainly on the emergency phone or to 911.

Fire is a different matter. The NYC page says to use the stairs and never the elevator during a fire.

After a rescue

We found no public source that sets out a standard after-rescue routine for passengers, and it varies. What the sources do say is that the equipment is not simply restarted. NEII explains that, on elevators built to the 2000 and later editions of the national code, the emergency brake must be manually reset, which requires a qualified mechanic to diagnose and correct the problem before service resumes. The Massachusetts materials say the landing door must be secured after passengers are removed. If you were hurt or shaken, tell building management and seek medical attention as needed. Reports about stalled equipment can go to the building and to the local elevator authority, whose rules differ by place. For how inspection and oversight generally work, see inspection, maintenance and regulation.

If your fear is falling

Many people picture a plunge when a car stops. The page on elevator myths about cable snaps and free fall explains the ropes, governor, safety gear and buffer that guard against it, and elevator, lift and escalator safety lays out the full set of layers. For a first look at how the machine moves the car, start with how elevators and lifts work.

The short version

If an elevator stops, stay calm, press the door-open button once, use the emergency phone or alarm, and wait for trained help. Never pry doors or climb out, because the hoistway is a hazard and the car may move. Procedures, equipment and rescue responsibilities differ by jurisdiction, so follow posted instructions and the guidance of building staff and emergency services.