SINGAPORE: The Building and Construction Authority (BCA) has ordered the suspension of the use of a lift where an elderly woman's hand was severed on Friday morning (Oct 9).

The incident happened at Block 322 Tah Ching Road in Taman Jurong. The Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF) said it was alerted to the incident at 7.27am and when they arrived, they found the elderly woman stuck in the lift on the ground floor with her left hand trapped in between the lift doors.

SCDF officers freed the woman using rescue tools to pry open the lift doors. She was sent to National University Hospital (NUH) with a serious left hand injury. The hospital was alerted to be on standby, SCDF said.

TODAY reported that the woman’s left hand was retrieved by paramedics, packaged in ice and taken to NUH with her.

Taman Jurong grassroots leaders visited the elderly woman and her family members at NUH on Friday afternoon. She was conscious but needed further medical treatment to stablise her condition.

Channel NewsAsia understands that her severed hand cannot be re-attached. She also has a fractured leg.

JURONG TOWN COUNCIL MUST APPOINT AUTHORISED EXAMINER: BCA

BCA said in a statement in the interest of public safety, it has issued a notice to suspend the use of the lift B at block to the Jurong Town Council while investigations are ongoing.

Jurong Town Council must appoint an Authorised Examiner (AE) to conduct an investigation to determine the cause of the incident and to submit the investigation report to BCA. The appointed AE is also required to propose repairs to the lift, if necessary, and engage a registered lift contractor to carry out the recommended repair works.

"BCA is also requiring Jurong Town Council to immediately appoint an AE to inspect the other lift in the same block to confirm that it is safe to be used," a spokesperson said.
"The investigation and proposed measures must be carried out to the satisfaction of the Commissioner of Buildings before the incident lift B is allowed to operate.”

The BCA spokesperson also said that the appointed AE will have to propose repairs to the lift, if necessary, and engage a registered lift contractor to carry out the recommended repair works.
Jurong Town Council will also need to appoint an AE to inspect the other lift in the same block to confirm that it is safe to be used.

The BCA spokesperson said: "The investigation and proposed measures must be carried out to the satisfaction of the Commissioner of Buildings before the incident lift B is allowed to operate.”
When contacted, a police spokesperson said they are not investigating the incident as no foul play was involved.

WITNESSES TRIED TO HELP

Senior manager of Jurong Town Council Allan Koh told Channel NewsAsia that the woman was walking her dog around the estate early in the morning before the incident. He said witnesses tried to help when they saw the dog outside the lift.

The lift in question was jammed between the second and third floor at the time. When SCDF arrived, the lift had moved down to the ground floor.

A witness said she heard a loud bang when the accident happened. "As I walked further up, I saw an object hanging above the lift on the ground floor and I realised it was a dog," she said.

"I saw that the lift was on the third floor. I didn't know what was going on. So I took the other lift home. Just then, a couple ran upstairs to take a pair of scissors wanting to cut off the leash."

Mr Koh also said inspections of the lift so far have found no fault but that it has yet to be put back in service pending checks by the Building and Construction Authority.

He said the lift doors have safety edges and "a few” sensors that make the doors re-open upon contact with objects. There is also a photo sensor at the bottom that detects movement of feet.

The lifts at the block are about 20 years old.

A Jurong Town Council representative visited the woman’s family in hospital, but was unable to see the patient as of 4pm.

The woman's family has requested privacy and declined to be interviewed.

"SAFETY OF PUBLIC TOP PRIORITY": LIFTMAKER SIGMA

The maker of the lift SIGMA said in a statement on Friday evening that it is working closely with authorities to assist with ongoing investigations. "We are conducting checks of the mechanical device and the safety mechanisms on the elevator doors, to determine if they were functioning properly. A report will be made available once our investigation is completed," it said.

The liftmaker said maintenance is carried out once a month and that it is checking records to confirm when maintenance was last done to the affected lift.

It said Lift A at Block 322 has checked by an independent certified engineer according to the BCA's requirement and it was certified safe for use.

新加坡：在建设局（BCA）已下令使用电梯，其中一名老妇的手被切断，在周五早上（10月9日）暂停。

这一事件发生在块322塔赫正道在塔曼裕廊。新加坡民防部队（SCDF）表示，已知悉事件发生在上午07点27分，当他们赶到时，他们发现老年妇女被困在电梯上一楼，她的左手被困在电梯门之间。

新加坡民防部队人员获释用破拆工具撬开电梯门的女人。她被送往国立大学医院（NUH）有严重的左手受伤。医院已知悉随时待命，新加坡民防部队说。

今天报道说，该女子的左手被检索的医护人员用冰包装，送往新加坡国立大学医院用于治疗。

在国大医院在星期五下午，塔曼裕廊基层领导慰问了老太太和她的家人。伤者是有意识的，但需要进一步的治疗，以稳定下来她的病情。

亚洲新闻频道了解到，她的断手无法重新连接，并且她也有腿部骨折。

裕廊市镇理事会必须委聘认可考官：BCA

BCA表示，为了公众安全利益的声明，它已下发通知，暂停使用裕廊市镇理事会电梯，而调查正在进行之中。

裕廊市镇理事会必须委聘认可考官（AE）进行调查，以确定事故的原因，并提交调查报告BCA。被任命的AE还需要提出维修电梯，如果有必要，并聘请注册升降机承建商进行推荐的维修工程。

“BCA还要求裕廊市镇理事会立即任命一名AE检查乘另一部电梯，并在同一区域以确认它是安全的使用”，一位发言人说。“调查，并提出措施，必须进行以屋宇署署长满意的事件升降B可以操作了。”

至于理事会与当事人有接触，警方发言人表示，他们不会调查这一事件因为此行为不涉及犯规。

证人试图帮助

裕廊市镇理事会阿伦岛的高级经理告诉亚洲新闻频道，在案发前的清晨，女子的狗围绕房子转。他说，当他们看到电梯外的狗，证人试图帮助女子。

在考虑中的升降机的第二和第三层在时刻之间被卡住。当新加坡民防部队赶到时，电梯已经向下移动到地面。

一位目击者说，她听到一声巨响时，意外发生了。 “当我走了进一步上涨，我看到一个物体挂在一楼的电梯上面，我意识到这是一只狗，”她说。

“我看到电梯是在三楼，我不知道发生了什么事情，所以我开着车回家。就在这时，一对夫妇跑上楼拿剪刀想切断皮带的。 “

许先生还表示，电梯的检查，至今没有发现任何故障，但它尚未被放回由建设局服务挂起检查。

他说，电梯门有安全的边缘和的传感器，使门重新打开在与物体接触。也有在检测的运动的脚的底部的光传感器。

一个裕廊市镇理事会代表参观了该女子的家人在医院，但该女子的家人要求隐私，拒绝接受采访。

“安全的公共重中之重”：LIFTMAKER SIGMA

电梯SIGMA的制造商在上周五晚上，它正在与当局协助与正在进行的调查发表声明说。 “我们正在进行机械设备的检查和对电梯门的安全机制，以确定它们是否都正常工作。在我们调查完成之后，报告将一次性提供。”

liftmaker所述维护进行每月一次，主要是检查记录，以确认当维护最后完成向受影响的电梯。

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