NHK



 

All 20 people, including two children, have been rescued from an elevator at Tokyo Skytree in Tokyo's Sumida Ward after being trapped there for more than 5 hours. No injuries have been reported.

Tokyo police and others say two elevators connecting to the observation deck stopped suddenly shortly before 8:30 p.m. on Sunday.

One of them was empty, but the other carrying 20 people came to a halt about 30 meters above ground.

Police officers and others contacted the people inside by phone to look for ways to rescue them.

Rescuers from the fire department helped the people move to an adjacent elevator lowered to the same height and whose emergency door on its side was open.

All were freed at about 2 a.m. on Monday.

Police say no one was injured or complained of feeling unwell.
About 1,200 people were temporarily stranded on the observation deck. But they all came down by 11 p.m. using a different elevator.

A Tokyo Skytree spokesperson says the elevator in question has a capacity of 40 people, and it stopped while descending from the observation deck.
Police and others are looking into the cause of the trouble.