Ad exec’s death prompts new elevator legislation

The tragic death in December of advertising executive Suzanne Hart  has prompted two new bills on elevator inspection and safety, DNAinfo reported. The City Council will vote on the two bills, which will require certification for elevator mechanics and additional safety mechanisms in elevators.

“Human error is not an excuse for loss of life,” said City Council Speaker Christine Quinn, who has scheduled a hearing on the proposed bills for April 16.

The Department of Buildings has ascertained that maintenance workers at 285 Madison Avenue, between 40th and 41st streets, where Hart was killed, failed to enable a door safety circuit on the elevator in question. Hart was crushed to death when the elevator shot up as she was entering it, published reports said. The Department of Buildings has suspended the operating license for Transel Elevator, the company performing the maintenance. [DNAinfo]