The Longest Elevator Fall 😱

story of Betty Lou Oliver, a 20-year-old elevator operator who survived a dramatic incident at the Empire State Building on July 28, 1945. On that day, a B-25 Mitchell bomber, lost in thick fog, crashed into the north side of the building between the 78th and 80th floors. The impact killed 14 people—three crew members aboard the plane and 11 people inside the building—and caused significant damage, including severing the cables of an elevator. Betty was working on the 80th floor when the plane struck. The force of the crash threw her out of her elevator, leaving her with severe burns and injuries, including a broken neck, back, and pelvis. First responders, aiming to get her to safety, placed her in another elevator to descend to the ground floor. Unbeknownst to them, the cables of this elevator had also been compromised by the crash. Shortly after it began its descent, the cables snapped, sending the elevator into a 75-story free fall—approximately 1,000 feet—to the basement. Miraculously, Betty survived this plunge, which remains the longest elevator fall ever survived, earning her a Guinness World Record. Her survival is attributed to a combination of factors: the buildup of air pressure in the tight elevator shaft likely slowed the car’s descent, and the severed cables piled up at the bottom, acting as a crude cushion. Despite her severe injuries, she was rescued from the wreckage and, after months of recovery, went on to live until 1999. This event is a wild footnote in history—pure chance and physics aligning to defy the odds. Betty’s story stands out not just for her survival but for the sheer absurdity of cheating death twice in one day.

space meets sound

I would have died mid-air.

That is what you call a miracle

source:

OH GOD NO..

New York can't catch a break 💀

For Anyone Curious This was in July 28, 1945, when a U.S. Army Air Forces B-25 Mitchell bomber, piloted by Lt. Col. William F. Smith Jr. crashed into the Empire State Building due to heavy fog. 20-year old Betty Lou Oliver was the elevator operator and was inside when it happened

poor woman

The jet fuel didn’t melt the steel beams?

mi honesta reaccion: