For most people, the scariest part of riding an elevator is the thought that it could suddenly plummet from great heights.
One man in Chile had the exact opposite (but equally terrifying) experience Friday, after an elevator he was riding in suddenly rocketed upwards out of control.
According to the Chilean news service Emol, 31-year-old José Vergara Acevedo entered the elevator on the first floor of a building at Bustamante Community Park in Providencia.
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He presses a button to ascend, but you can already see there are problems as the elevator takes off without the doors having fully closed.
But when the doors open again mid-ride, it becomes clear to Acevedo that something is seriously amiss.
He presses the emergency stop button, then frantically begins to hammer every button on the panel, hoping to halt the elevator’s speedy ascent – but to no avail.
In 15 seconds, the elevator rises past all of the building’s 31 floors, before violently slamming into the roof of the elevator shaft.
According to reports from Chilean media, Acevedo was seriously injured in the collision, and had to be taken to hospital with head and leg injuries.
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