Cheap Lifts, Costly Consequences for Lives and Limbs

As the number of high-rise buildings in Bangladesh grows at a geometric rate, lifts, or elevators, have evolved from a luxury feature into an everyday necessity. But behind this mechanical mode of transport lies extreme negligence and irresponsibility. The temptation to save a small amount of money, unskilled workmanship and the use of outdated equipment have turned lifts in high-rise buildings into moving death traps. The public is paying for the lack of regular maintenance and the cost-cutting measures with their lives, while many others are being left disabled.

According to experts and engineers, most lifts used in Bangladesh have a normal service life of 20 to 25 years. However, hundreds of buildings across the country continue to operate risky lifts for years after they have exceeded that lifespan.

Many building owners also choose low-quality and unbranded lifts from the market to save a small amount of money when purchasing them. Moreover, these lifts are often installed by completely unskilled technicians without any consultation with professional engineers. As a result, major technical flaws remain from the very beginning.

After installation, lifts require regular monitoring. However, most buildings in the country do not conduct any institutional maintenance of their lifts. Accidents are increasing at a geometric rate because of makeshift maintenance and repairs carried out by unskilled people.

Experts say lifts are turning into operational death traps mainly due to four major failures. One of the key issues is the lack of monitoring. Although lifts are supposed to undergo inspections at least once a month and a full examination of all components once a year, these measures are rarely followed.

Another major cause of accidents is the absence of an Automatic Rescue Device (ARD). This device is essential to ensure that a lift does not become stuck midway during a power outage. However, cheaper lifts often do not include this feature.

Malfunctioning alarms and fans also contribute to casualties in accidents. In most cases, the ventilation fan and emergency alarm button inside the lift do not work when passengers become trapped. As a result, people inside suffer panic attacks or become ill due to a lack of oxygen. Some even die.

Carrying passengers beyond a lift’s capacity also increases the risk of accidents. Ignoring the stated passenger capacity and overcrowding lifts often leads to disasters.

Many lifts also carry passengers beyond their intended capacity, which is extremely risky. Therefore, passengers also need to be aware. However, if a lift gets stuck for any reason, panicking, crying or shaking the doors can make the situation worse; instead, people should remain calm and wait.

Data from the Bangladesh Fire Service and Civil Defence show that the country recorded 887 lift accidents between 2020 and 2025. These accidents claimed 20 lives and injured at least 900 people.

The most alarming situation was seen in 2024 alone, when six people were killed and nearly 200 others were injured. In the previous year, 2023, nine people died in 174 accidents.

Until 2019, the annual reports of the Fire Service did not classify lift accidents separately and instead counted them under “rescue of people trapped in buildings,” making it impossible to determine the exact number of lift accidents in previous years.

Moreover, the Fire Service only keeps records of incidents in which its rescue teams directly participated or received emergency calls. As a result, information about hundreds of other accidents remains hidden.

The highest number of lift accidents is occurring in government institutions and hospitals, where public footfall is the greatest. Patients seeking treatment and ordinary citizens visiting these facilities often find themselves in terrifying situations.

In 2016, then Health Minister Mohammad Nasim and six others became trapped in a lift at the Secretariat, while in March 2024, then Health Minister Dr. Samanta Lal Sen and 14 others faced a similar ordeal in a hospital lift.

Lift accidents in hospitals have also resulted in deaths. In May 2024, the door of a lift at Shaheed Tajuddin Ahmad Medical College Hospital in Gazipur opened before reaching the designated floor due to a mechanical fault. A patient named Jillur Rahman fell through the empty space from the 12th floor and died.

Just eight days later, another patient, Momtaz Begum, died from a lack of oxygen after being trapped inside a lift at the same hospital for 45 minutes.

Accidents have also occurred due to snapped cables and jammed lifts. In 2023, many people were seriously injured at Central Specialized Hospital in Manikganj and Sherpur Sadar Hospital after lifts became jammed and cables snapped because they were carrying twice their intended capacity.

Educational institutions and commercial buildings are not exempt from such incidents either. In April last year, 26 students were trapped for half an hour inside a malfunctioning lift at the Faculty of Arts building of the University of Dhaka. One female student lost consciousness due to panic in the confined space.

In October of the previous year, an official died in a lift accident at the CARS building of Curzon Hall at the same university. In May this year, 11 students at Munshi Meherullah Hall of Jashore University of Science and Technology fell ill with breathing difficulties after becoming trapped in a lift.

In 2016, a lift crashed into the basement of Alauddin Tower in Uttara, triggering a gas line explosion that killed six people.

In 2020, a woman fell to her death from the fifth floor in Uttara after a lift door opened even though the lift had not arrived.

Earlier, in March 2018, a nine-year-old child died after suffering a head injury in Chamelibagh in the capital when a lift door shut forcefully because its sensor failed while the child was entering the lift with family members.

Experts say there is no room for negligence regarding lifts. Most accidents could be avoided through regular maintenance. They also stressed that authorities must take action against those responsible if negligence is proven, while the government should tighten oversight to prevent the use of expired and low-quality lifts and raise public awareness.

Dr. Hasan Mohammad Mostafa Afroz, a professor at the Department of Mechanical Engineering at the Dhaka University of Engineering and Technology (DUET), said modern, high-quality lifts are equipped with multiple backup safety systems that make accidents easier to avoid.

He said, “If one system fails for any reason, another provides protection. As a result, incidents such as lifts getting stuck or other accidents are very rare. This is why we rarely hear about lift accidents in Japan, Singapore or other developed countries.”

“But in our country, these accidents happen frequently because these lifts are not maintained regularly. In some cases, low-quality equipment is also used, which is very unfortunate. The matter should be taken very seriously. There is no room for negligence. Authorities of hospitals and other important public institutions, in particular, need to be much more careful,” added the mechanical engineering professor.

Referring to his own university as an example, he told Agamir Somoy, “Our lifts undergo regular maintenance at least once every month. In addition, all components are inspected once a year. There are around 40 items on our checklist. Each of them is thoroughly examined to prevent lift accidents. If other institutions and residential buildings could maintain their lifts in the same way, there would be no concern over this issue.”

Public health experts and engineers say hospital lifts are far more sensitive than those in shopping malls or residential buildings because they have to carry wheelchairs and stretchers. For that reason, each lift should have a skilled operator on duty at all times. Otherwise, a major mechanical failure or even a devastating accident such as a fire could occur at any moment.

The Institution of Engineers, Bangladesh (IEB), is the country’s only professional organization for engineers. Its Dhaka Centre General Secretary, Engineer K M Asaduzzaman, is also the chairman of Sonic Elevator Limited.

He said many lifts in the country continue to operate for years even after exceeding their service life. Some people also use low-quality lifts to save a small amount of money. In addition, most lifts do not receive regular maintenance. Sometimes lifts are installed and maintained by unskilled people without the advice of professional engineers, leading to a rise in accidents.

Urging everyone to act responsibly, Engineer Asaduzzaman told Agamir Somoy, “Many lifts also carry passengers beyond their intended capacity, which is extremely risky. Therefore, passengers also need to be aware. However, if a lift gets stuck for any reason, panicking, crying or shaking the doors can make the situation worse; instead, people should remain calm and wait. There is an example of a man in a hospital in India remaining alive after being trapped in a lift for two days. Therefore, instead of becoming restless, people should press the alarm button and try to contact relatives or call 999 for help.”