Elevator technician falls from 36th floor of condo

MANILA, Philippines - An elevator technician instantly died after falling from the 36th floor of a condominium building in Binondo, Manila during a power outage brought by typhoon Basyang yesterday.

The freak accident was discovered by the building’s roving security guard at around 8:30 a.m. when he noticed splotches of blood at the main door of elevator 5 at the ground floor of the 39-story World Trade Exchange Condominium along Juan Luna street, according to officer-on-case SPO4 Richard Lumbad.

The guard immediately informed the other guards in the building who forced open the door of elevator 5, one of the six elevators in the building. When opened, the elevator yielded a grotesque mangled body of a man with the left arm dismembered.

Lumbad said the victim was identified as Victorino Orcajada, 47, the stay-in building maintenance man responsible for operations of the elevators.

From inquiry made by Lumbad from the building personnel, he gathered that it was the victim’s daily routine to check the performance of the elevators. Lumbad traced the occurrence of the accident at the 36th floor where the door of elevator 5 was still open.

The victim could have accidentally stepped inside even when the lift had not yet moved up, resulting to his fatal plunge, according to Lumbad.

Lumbad said the elevator car could have malfunctioned due to power outage, and the building only relied on the generator for power.

The impact of the fall heavily dented the thick metal car sheave cover of the elevator and had caused the dismemberment of the victim’s body, said Lumbad.