Two workers doing renovation work at the University’s Accelerator Building were injured the morning of Monday February 11 after a service elevator between the basement and subbasement in the building fell 12 feet.
The building, which is across the street from the Mansueto Library construction site and immediately north of the research institutes at 5620 South Ellis Avenue, is currently undergoing renovation work, according to U of C spokesperson Steve Kloehn.
The two workers, who were not University employees, were injured but not seriously hurt and were “treated and released from UCMC,” Kloehn said. The elevator itself was a service elevator and not a passenger elevator and had been reserved for the use of contractors working on the renovation work inside the building at the time.
According to Kloehn, the elevator was functioning normally. As to the cause of the elevator malfunction, the University, along with local and federal authorities, are investigating the matter in conjunction with the vendor who handles elevator maintenance for the elevator inspection agency of the city of Chicago. In addition, OSHA, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration will also be looking into the matter.
“It would be some time before final cause is determined,” Kloehn said.
