Grandmother wails in agony after plunging down ELEVATOR shaft in New Jersey apartment building

  • A woman in her seventies picked up her granddaughter from school and called the elevator
  • She stepped into nothing but air and fell from the first floor, screaming in pain
  • Neighbors took the girl back and called for help, after which she was rushed to the hospital

A grandmother was almost killed when she stepped through the elevator doors of her apartment building, fell into the shaft and became stuck at the bottom.

The woman in her 70s had just picked up her young granddaughter from school on Tuesday and called the elevator from the first floor of the Jersey City building. She stepped inside, but hit nothing but air and felt the ground below.

Neighbors rushed to help as she screamed in pain while trapped at the bottom of the shaft with the little girl watching from above.

Brandon Rennick and his cousin rescued the girl, but were unable to do anything other than call firefighters and an ambulance to help the elderly woman.

A grandmother was almost killed when she stepped through the elevator doors of her apartment building and fell into the shaft

The elevator was taped off shortly after the incident and is still in need of repairs

The elevator was taped off shortly after the incident and is still in need of repairs

Edwin Perdomo, who lives next door to the woman's daughter, said it was not clear why the elevator was broken but that there were many problems with the building

Edwin Perdomo, who lives next door to the woman’s daughter, said it was not clear why the elevator was broken but that there were many problems with the building

Her daughter said she was rushed to hospital with a broken elbow, stomach laceration and hip injuries.

Edwin Perdomo, who lives next door to the woman’s daughter, said it was not clear why the elevator was broken, but there were many problems in the building.

“People have been complaining about problems since the time they moved in and nothing ever gets done,” he said NBC.

“I’ve counted people with stories about this elevator getting stuck.”

Perdomo showed the media the mold on the roof of his unit, along with flies, broken light fixtures and water leaks that are never fixed.

The building is run by Cross County Management, which a resident said called a meeting with tenants Thursday after the elevator incident.

A neighbor said management was at the building days after the incident.