A Nightmare to Remember!
By A Yahoo! Contributor, 07/26/04
Some time ago, my wife and I stayed at the Sleezy-8 in La Mesa, CA - or at least we attempted to. Before retiring for the night, I took the elevator to go down to the parking lot. The elevator got stuck for an unknown reason. Trapped, I proceeded to press the alarm (noise & bell) repeatedly for over an hour. When patrons complained of the sound to the management they were told (a lie) that someone's alarm clock was going off and it was being taken care of.
After 1 hour, someone discovered I was in the elevator and told the management. Management called the elevator repairman who could not come until morning. They did nothing more.
Soon after that, the power went out on the block and the whole building, including the elevator, went dark. By this time, my wife knew I was stuck and tried to dial 911, but the lines were dead. She tried to get management to call 911 with their cell phone, but they refused.
My wife then had to walk to a gas station a block away and call 911.
The firemen finally arrived and said they had to get me out immediately because there was a risk of the elevator falling when the power came back on. They said it was incredibly irresponsible that they had not been notified immediately.
After 2 hours from the time I got stuck, I was finally removed unharmed.
I demanded a refund that night (about midnight when I was rescued), but management only yelled at me to leave the office or they would ironically call 911.
The next morning, after I went to a hotel across the street, I returned for a refund. I received a refund accompanied by a scolding from management. They were upset (in spite of the danger noted by the firemen) that the fire fighters had been called because "they could have damaged the elevator." They even explained that we should have waited 5 or 8 hours more for the repairman to show up.
