City Council Committee Questions NYCHA Over Deadly Elevator Accident
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) -- A New York City Council committee on Thursday held a public hearing about faulty elevators in public housing, after a report that complaints were not addressed.
As WCBS 880's Rich Lamb reported, the Department of Investigation issued the report last month, following a December elevator accident that left Olegario Pabon, 84, dead in the Boston Road Plaza development in the Bronx.
Pabon walked slowly using a cane and had little of hope of saving himself as he stepped inside the building's elevator. It was the day before this past Christmas and the fall sent him to the hospital where he died.
The accident was caused by a faulty brake motor. The DOI report said problems with the equipment had been reported, but action was not taken in time.
At the City Council Committee on Public Housing hearing Thursday, Councilman Ritchie Torres (D-15th) questioned Luis Ponce of the New York City Housing Authority.
"So you trained them on how to maintain brake monitors, but you had no policy requiring them to actually do it in practice?" Torres asked.
"It did not specify the brake monitor, which is essentially a part of the brake, so that's where we failed," Ponce replied.
NYCHA General Manager Michael Kelly testified that he was notified of the fatal accident four days after it took place. He called that unacceptable and declared the time for change is right now.
