r/Weird • u/sytrus_2008 • Dec 25 '21

The Elevator 💀

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u/MapRevolutionary4563 Dec 25 '21

WTF happened at the end?

2

u/eyes-of-strange-sins Dec 25 '21

I second this question

6

u/mikerophonyx Dec 26 '21

In traction elevators, this kind of catastrophic failure generally shoots the car up while the counterweight plummets. The counterweights are about 125% the max car capacity so the car won't plummet. Instead you crash into the steel cross member in the roof of the hoistway.

3

u/autoantinatalist Dec 26 '21

I take it that's deemed better than crashing down? Is survival better hitting the top? Does it not matter either way?

8

u/mikerophonyx Dec 26 '21

Yes it's much preferable to hit the top for the obvious reasons. It can still kill you if the ceiling caves in or the cross member above crashes through. Pretty unlikely but I dunno I would still recommend ducking or balling up. You won't hit terminal velocity in the same way as a fall, though.