Tips to be given for escalator riders

In Hong Kong, the government and some famous public enterprises, such as MTR, have been looking for effective way to minimize or control the accident rate in escalators. Within the rate, children may have more escalator accidents in part because they bounce around when they stand on escalators, instead of watching where they place their feet. During the past 18 months, I carried out 43 reports of escalator accidents; those have most part involved young children and elderly riders. In fact, falls on escalator are a major source of injuries for passengers, passengers fall on escalator for a number of reasons, such as tripping while walking up or down, misuse of shopping cart on escalator, and losing balance in the passage of time. I am unwilling to write such report like the above-mentioned reasons because in my opinion, based upon the standards applicable to all escalators in Hong Kong and upon the knowledge that escalator manufacturers have had for years, there should never be any serious injuries involving in the passage of time. However, escalator accidents with human factors are not difficult to be seen nowadays. Perhaps the following some examples of the escalator accidents of recent one year will help make the cautions more memorable.

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Escalator Accident (Example1)

District: Wong Tai Sin

Detailed Description of accident and damage incurred

On January 11, 2013, an 85-year-old woman (the victim) used the escalator (Escalator No. 5) to go down to UG level of the mall, when she travelled at her half-ride, she suddenly lost her balance and she rolled forward until to the bottom of the escalator as captured by the CCTV camera being installed at top of the UG level, the footage captured the partial course of the incident that the victim started to roll downwards against the bottom of the escalator, it was not clearly known where the exactly location of the victim fell was due to the camera’s setting but the security staff who provided information had supplemented the incident.

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In the short chip, several passengers ahead of the victim on the escalator, there was a long distance (about 10 steps long) separated from the elderly woman and those passengers who were ahead her. This was a deadly case as no people could be buffering while she rolled forward, she tumbled to the bottom of the escalator just a terrifying few seconds. Someone quickly ran back to help the victim and someone pressed the emergency stop button to stop the moving escalator, other passengers assisted the victim to sit upright and half-carried her to lean against the right balustrade of the escalator as shown in the chip. From the security staff’s information, the elderly woman had a blooding wound on her head back, and was found bruised on right knee in the accident.

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At the time, the security staff of the plaza was notified the incident happened and called the Ambulance immediately. After minutes, the ambulance staff arrived at the scene to her aid (it was recorded at 11:45 a.m.), the victim was moved on a stretcher and sent to the nearby hospital for medical treatment at approximately 12:00 p.m.

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Conclusion:

Apropos of the cause of the accident, it was due to the victim who lost her balance in the ride, she fell on the escalator until tumbling to the bottom of the escalator.

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Escalator Incident (Example 2)

District: Tuen Mun

Detailed Description of accident and damage incurred

On February 24, 2013, a 67-year-old man (the victim) accessed the escalator (Escalator No. 3) at level 3; he was with his shopping cart loaded a pack of red-wines and intended to go down the bottom (the level 2 of the mall). When he was about one-thirds of the way down the escalator, he suddenly lost his footing and was tumbled by the shopping cart of which the carton of red-wine was placed unevenly that caused the victim to take a fall. The escalator was stopped in the event after the victim’s body and the cart hit to the bottom comb-plate by activating the comb-plate safety switch of the escalator. As per the record time of the plaza’s surveillance camera, this happened around 15:45 p.m. From the short chip, it captured only the partial course of the accident that the victim carrying a shopping cart accessed the escalator from the level 3 of the said plaza; the man’s cart carried a carton of red-wine (approximately 12 bottles are packaged) that the carton was most likely not even in the cart’s bracket resulted an unbalance gravity from the front of the cart while he reached at the inclined portion of the travel. According to the building management information, the victim required three (3) stitches on his left hand’s little finger which had a large gash along the last joint of his finger. He was injured by fragments of the wine bottles which broken in the fall.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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▲The victim accessed the escalator at the level 3; he was with his shopping cart loaded a pack of red-wines and intended to go down the bottom of the escalator. When he was about one-thirds of the way down the escalator, he suddenly lost his footing and was tumbled to the bottom.

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At the time, the security staff of the plaza was notified the incident happened and called the Ambulance at once. Minutes after the accident, the ambulance staff arrived at the scene to treat the victim (the arrival time was at 16:00 p.m. as the security staff recorded), the victim was brought to the Tuen Mun Hospital for medical treatment at the time of 16:15 p.m.

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▲According to the security staff’s information, the victim suffered a cut on the back of his left hand near little finger by the glass fragments and was bleeding in the accident, the victim required three (3) stitches on his left hand’s little finger which had a large gash along the last joint of his finger.

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Conclusion:

The old man should not use the escalator when he travelled with a shopping cart or bulky luggage, he should use a lift.

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Escalator Incident (Example 3)

District: Tai Po

Detailed Description of accident and damage incurred

At the occurrence time of 09:52 a.m. on February 27, 2013, a 68-year-old woman used the escalator alone (Escalator No. 3, it is an up-running escalator, served from 1 level (L1) to 2 level (L2)) to go up the level 2. As per the management officer’s information, the elderly woman who was giddy and felt not well, she then fell on the escalator by losing her footing while she was at the step-distance measured from the lower teeth to the fourth step away. Fortunately, there was a passers-by witnessed the incident happened and he pushed the escalator’s emergency stop button to stop the escalator operation. As reported, the elderly woman was not seriously damaged, she had just a blooding wound on her head back, and was found bruised on left elbow. 

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Conclusion:

Apropos of the cause of the accident, it was due to the victim who lost balance during the ride.

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Escalator Incident (Example 4)

District: Kwai Chung

Detailed Description of incident and damage incurred

At 14:37 p.m. on March 24, 2013, a twenty-something-year-old lady (the victim) used the down-running escalator (Esc no. 9) to go down to Level 1 of the mall. The lady was injured in the incident after she fell on the escalator. It happened at a famous shopping mall located in Kwai Chung. According to the plaza’s surveillance videos’ information, the first chip captured the lady accessed the said escalator at Level 2 with hurried walk; she even walked on the moving steps and passed through other passengers while she was the way down the escalator. The second chip was captured by the another camera installed at the top of the Level 1 area, the chip showed that the victim suddenly lost her balance and then fell on the moving steps, this happened at 14:37:45 p.m. as per the record time of the plaza’s surveillance camera. Fortunately, there was at the time a passer-by witnessed the fall accident and he pressed at once the escalator emergency button to stop the escalator operation. From the security staff information, the lady was found bruised in her back after the fall accident.

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Conclusion:

Riders need to be aware of the danger while they are travelling on the escalator, the victim should hold onto the handrail and stand on the step all the time during the ride instead of doing the risky passenger behavior such as walking on the moving escalator steps, this will increase the risk of passenger falls and affect to other passengers.

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To avoid falling on the escalators, I will suggest the following tips:

- Make sure your shoelaces are tied and that you are not trailing a lace before getting on the escalator.

- Avoid the edges and sides of steps where your foot could be captured. Stand in the middle of the step.

- Always face forward and hold the handrail.

- Don't use escalators when you carry the lagguage or shopping cart.

- Do not permit children to sit or play on escalator steps.

- Don't walk, run or do any dangerous act during the travel of escalator.

- Accompany children or elderly on escalators; do not let them ride alone.

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Prepared by Ken Ngan Chi Keung
RLE 418, REE390