Sharjah: Residents a 10-storey building in Sharjah are wary of using lifts after frequently getting stuck inside the old, ill-functioning lifts.
The Sana Building on Al Wahda Street has 200 apartments.
Many residents have even take to the stairs rather than risk being stranded inside the lifts.
The building management, while stating three of the four lifts are functional after recent repairs, admitted it took time to get the lifts in working condition as they were over 17 years old.
Notices instructing only a maximum of four people inside the lift at a time have been put up outside the lifts which could originally accommodate eight people at a time.
“Most of us have had scary experiences of being shut inside the lifts for several minutes. Two of the four lifts have been out of order for more than six months,” Kalil, a resident on the fifth-floor of the building told XPRESS.
“Last month, the third one also stopped working so we had only one lift for 200 apartments. If more than four people get into the lift, it gets stuck. There are times I have waited for over 20 minutes for the lift.
“It is particularly difficult for senior people and children to take the staircase. Getting in and out of the building itself has become a huge task,” Kalil added.
Residents said they do not leave their apartments unless urgent.
A 62-year-old ton the 10th floor said: “I have nearly stopped going out after I got stuck at least four times in the lift.
The last time I got very scared when the lift partially opened, then shut and hurtled with great speed to the ground floor. The door did not open and the lift went up and the door opened only on the 10th floor,” he said.
“Now we make it a point that all the family members do not go together and are always alert should we get a phone call from our loved ones in the lift.
“Being shut inside a lift without fans or alarm bell is a very unnerving situation,” the 62-year-old added.
Another resident who lives with his family on the 10th floor said: “We have gotten used to taking the staircase. My school-going daughter gets late often due to the lift, we are never sure when we could get shut.”
Stranded
“On one occasion, I was stranded inside even though there were only two of us. The lift stopped in between two floors after which the watchman had to manually push it down. We were inside for more than 20 minutes,” a 6th floor resident said.
The residents said the lifts need to be replaced as they are unsafe. “Whenever a lift gets out of order, it takes them several weeks to get it repaired. They tell us the lifts are old and parts are not easily available. We have requested them to replace these lifts, but so far nothing has been done,” another resident said.
When contacted, Suresh Kumar from the maintenance section of Al Jazaeri Real Estate, which manages the building, said: “We recently repaired the lifts and three of them are working. The lifts are 17 years old which is why it takes time to get the parts.“
