Mayor Abby orders inspection of elevators in Makati

Makati Mayor Abby Binay. INQUIRER file photo

MANILA, Philippines–Makati Mayor Abby Binay on Friday ordered the Office of the Building Official (OBO) to conduct a rigorous inspection of all elevators in Makati buildings to ensure their compliance with the safety requirements as provided for in the National Building Code of the Philippines.

The order came after an elevator at the Philippine Bank of Communications (PBCom) Tower located on Ayala Avenue malfunctioned at around 11:30 p.m. on Thursday, February 28, causing it to freefall from the 10th floor to the ground at an abnormal speed.

READ: 14 hurt in Makati building elevator malfunction

JC Roldan, a Building Management System (BMS) operator at PBCom, also claimed that the emergency braking device of the elevator was not working.

“I would like to reiterate to building owners and administrators that it is their responsibility to ensure that all elevators in their building are well-maintained,” Mayor Abby said.

Mayor Abby also said it is the responsibility of the building owners and administrators to ensure the safety of every person going inside their building premises.

When the elevator mishap transpired, the first responders to the incident were ambulances from the Makati Search and Rescue Team and its clusters, Poblacion Rescue, Bangkal Rescue, San Isidro Rescue, Valenzuela Rescue and San Lorenzo Rescue, and the Philippine Red Cross.

According to the Makati Command Control and Communication Center (C3), the center received a telephone call from Roldan at about 10:54 p.m. informing them of the incident and requesting assistance for 17 elevator passengers who suffered dizziness and sustained minor injuries.

The C3 reported that some of the victims are Filipino and Chinese employees of Huawei Technology, while the others are call center employees. They were brought to the Makati Medical Center (MMC) and Ospital ng Makati (OsMak) because of lower back and knee pains, among other complaints.

Among the Chinese victims who were transported to MMC, according to the Philippine Red Cross, are Chen Xinguanf and Tigu Chineng. The Filipino victims brought to MMC were Hermino Samson, Patrick Joseph Jayson Lacsamana, Rolando Villarina, and John Feramin.

The other victims brought to Osmak were Randy Serda, Paltrey Reyes, Ace Serda, Narciso Teremoir, Perry Benig and Romel Cristoba.

The Makati City’s OBO is currently preparing its inspection report and recommendation to the Office of the Mayor as of this posting.

In a separate investigation, the Makati Police cited overloading as the cause of the malfunction. /jpv