This is a picture of a notice found outside a lift (elevator) in Karachi.
Translation of the Urdu bit is even more amusing than the English one. Here it is:
Attention - Beware: Before entering the lift make sure whether the lift is present or not, otherwise you may go down without the lift.
I think they could add another twist to it by writing instead:
Attention - Beware: Before entering the lift make sure whether the lift is present or not, otheriwse by going down you may go straight up instead.
There is no doubt that it is funny, but there is a lot more to it than just that. The truth is that this notice was probably put up because this lift failed to show up each time it was called. It is also possible that it led to an accident. Unfortunately, all that the concerned authorities did was put up this notice.
Speaking in a purely legal sense if someone got hurt because the doors opened, but the lift failed to show up then the owners of the property would be liable in the tort of negligence. There is a question of whether a duty of care was owed to those using the lift and there is no doubt in my mind that there would be. The lift was present on the premises and it was meant to be used by those visiting the property. Is that duty being breached if a lift fails to show up each time it’s called and the external doors open? Yes, it is as the users of the lift are being put into a known danger by leaving the lift operational even though it is faulty. Then there’s the question of foreseeability and once again there is no doubt in my mind that it is absolutely foreseeable, even with the notice around (the notice might not be that visible; the light around the notice might not be good etc.), that someone might get hurt due to such a faulty lift.
In fact, in this case the owners might be criminally negligent as well.
It’s funny how people get very excited about tall buildings, but there is very little maintenance of a machine that is absolutely imperative for any tall building. A while back I also spoke about how Karachi Port Trust was planning to build a 100+ storey building, but the entire city did not have fire-fighting equipment to counter an 11 storey fire. Lifts in most apartment buildings in Karachi are in very bad shape. I am certain that this is true not only for Karachi, but most other places around the country.
However, unless laws are enforced where owners are held liable for any accident due to faulty lifts nothing will change. Also, the government should appoint a team, if it hasn’t already, to check the state of every lift to make sure it is in working condition and not faulty. Otherwise, it should be made unoperational until it is repaired. Everything can’t be kaam chalao. There are some things where people need to put their foot down. Safety is definitely one of them.
Credit:Thanks to Anward Ahmed for forwarding this picture sent to him by Isa Daudpota.
lolz