A lift serving elderly people’s flats which broke down and was out of action for two weeks last month broke down again this week.
Elderly and disabled residents at Brick Kiln Place on Springfield Road, Grantham, were left trapped in their flats last month because there is only one passenger lift.
The lift was fixed overnight this week. Support coordinator Sam Charity said a lift mechanism had overheated. She said the lift had broken down several times recently.
Miss Charity said: “The support staff, carers and restaurant staff have been rallying round to ensure anybody who has been stuck has everything they need. The residents have been in good spirits. We are hoping we will not experience any more difficulties.”
When the lift was broken last month, an elderly resident had to be carried out of the complex by firemen when she fell ill because ambulancemen could not get her down the stairs. The woman, aged 82, died the next day in hospital, having suffered an aneurism. Her daughter, who did not wish to be named, stressed the lift had nothing to do with her mother’s death, but said many residents were trapped and were struggling when the lift did not work.
She said: “It has been mended twice and they still have not go to the bottom of it. It’s absolutely appalling. The majority of people there are in wheelchairs or are unable to get up and down the stairs. I don’t want any other residents to go through what we have been through.
“It’s not the staff’s fault. They are amazing and I feel really sorry for them.”