China escalator accident could have been prevented, probe shows

Preliminary investigation to the escalator accident in a shopping mall in central China which killed a woman has shown that the shopping mall employees were not acting strictly in accordance with the safety rules and regulations.

Chen Guanxin, director of Jingzhou Safety Supervision Bureau, Jingzhou city of central China's Hubei Province, said this on Monday at news briefing, adding the local authorities have already established a special team to further look into the cause of the accident and find out those responsible for it.

"The shopping mall employees found a metal panel was loosened five minutes before the accident, but failed to adopt any emergency measures such as stopping the escalator and conduct checks," said Chen.

"Preliminary investigation showed that the accident was caused by the loose panel and the reason that led to the panel being loose will be further investigated and analyzed through its structure, material, use and maintenance," said Chen.



According to Chen, the escalator was manufactured by the Suzhou Seloon Elevator Co., Ltd. on July 1, 2014 in another province, and was assembled and maintained by the Hubei Defu Electro Mechanical Equipment Co., Ltd.

It was inspected by the Hubei Special Equipment Inspection and Testing Institution, with the latest inspection on March 16, 2015.

Chen said the local authorities is conducting safety checks on escalators in the city and comforting the families of the woman.

The woman carrying her son took the escalator in an AZG shopping mall on Sunday morning and fell when she stepped onto a floor plate as it suddenly gave way.

She pushed her son upward to safety while she herself was engulfed in the gap to death. —Reuters