Exclusive: Empire State Building tour guide sues over ‘career-ending PTSD' after getting stuck in elevator 67 floors up
'Maxine Malcolm was entrapped, dangling high up – fearing for her very life and not knowing if the swinging elevator would drop at any time,' reads a civil complaint obtained by The Independent.
'As a result of the incident,' Malcolm, 55, 'found that she could no longer enter an elevator as an unnatural fear would overcome her,' the complaint contends. 'A gripping fear for which she had to seek treatment. As a result of the incident Maxine Malcolm could no longer work in her job and had to leave employment.'
The elevators in the 94-year-old Empire State Building 'often' get stuck, Malcolm says in her complaint. In 2008, five of the building's elevators all got stuck at the same time, forcing passengers to pry open the doors and jump down to the nearest landing. In 2016, members of a high school choir were trapped in an Empire State Building elevator some 40 stories in the air, and had to be rescued by firefighters. Last year, seven people were stranded in a stuck elevator on the tower's 16th floor, finally getting out after 90 minutes when rescue crews led them through a hatch in the car's ceiling.
Reached by phone on Tuesday, Malcolm, a Brooklyn resident, declined to answer any questions about her experience and referred The Independent to her attorney, Manuel Moses, who declined to comment.
Malcolm's complaint, which was filed July 18 in Kings County Supreme Court, says was 'a trusted employee and highly respected in her job, having served millions of tourists' during her 30 years as an Empire State Building tour guide.
Her duties involved 'ferry[ing] passengers on elevators' up to the observation deck, according to the complaint, which claims Malcolm 'observed that these elevators would often get stuck.'
'Maxine Malcolm would observe how on those occasions management at The Empire State Building would make every effort to ameliorate the anxiety and fear this would cause by offering free admission and words of assurance,' the complaint continues. 'Maxine Malcolm noticed that before this incident… occurred there was an elevator that was getting stuck going up to the observation deck and remaining in disrepair.'
According to Malcolm's complaint, cars 5, 6, 8, and 10 'broke down often.'
Around 3 p.m. on September 10, 2023, Malcolm was alone in car 6, heading upstairs for her lunch break, the complaint goes on. When it reached the 67th floor, the elevator suddenly stopped and began swinging back and forth, according to the complaint. Amid the turbulence, Malcolm 'was badly shaken to and fro in this elevator and was knocked to the floor… seriously injur[ing] her shoulder,' the complaint states.
'[I]t should be noted that this was the day before September 11th and in her mind this heightened her fear of possible impending death,' the complaint contends.
Eventually, Malcolm managed to get out, although the complaint does not specify how long she was stuck, and whether the elevator simply started up again or if she had to be rescued.
'Maxine Malcolm remains in psychological treatment related to the elevator incident, as she still suffers from PTSD[,] also known as post-traumatic stress disorder[,] and has a phobia for getting in an elevator by herself that causes severe emotional distress,' the complaint states.
Before Malcolm developed her elevator phobia, she was earning roughly $90,000 annually, with overtime and benefits, according to her complaint. Now, it says, she receives $2,182 per month from workers' comp, or, a little under $550 a week.
Malcolm's lawsuit blames the Otis Elevator Company for her troubles, including personal injury, emotional distress and economic damages. (The Empire State Building and its management are not named as defendants in the suit.)
It claims Otis Elevator breached a 'heightened duty of care as these elevators and more specifically the one involved is specifically used for income-earning purposes and intended to lift very high loads up very far for millions of people annually who have paid a fee to go up to the observation deck.'
'This incident was foreseeable,' Malcolm's complaint alleges. 'There was a history of problems with the elevators in The Empire State Building is that they have a tendency to break down and the employees from the Otis Elevator Company would take those elevators out of rotation, fix them, and sometimes they fix it or put it out for the entire day[,] depending on the issue.'
Yet, Malcolm accuses Otis Elevator of 'allowing' the elevator's condition to deteriorate by failing to – among other things – keep 'all the components of the elevator car, assembly, associated mechanicals and cables, lift electric motors, indicators, [and] sensors… in working order for the safety of the public.'
As a result, Malcolm's complaint says she experienced severe pain and suffering, emotional distress, and anguish. Malcolm wanted to continue working at the Empire State Building 'into her later years,' but is now unable to, according to the complaint.
She is suing on multiple causes of action, including negligence, elevator phobia and loss of employment, and is seeking monetary damages to be determined in court.
A spokesman for Otis, the world's largest elevator company, told The Independent, 'It would not be appropriate for us to comment on a pending legal matter.'
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Capacity: 50 ouncesPower: 1,100 wattsSpeeds: five, plus other features such as crushed ice and pulse $219 at Macys$219 at Beast Why we love itThe Beast is the newest brand on this list. Their personal blenders have a very strong motor at 1,200 watts, and this option, the Mega Plus, comes with three jars, for XL smoothies, little batches of sauce and everything in between. The Mega Plus came with more bits and bobs than any other blender I tried: in addition to the jars there are a drinking lid, two straws, a straw cleaner and a blade cleaner. If you like gear, this is likely the blender for you. Of the three personal blenders I tested, the Beast consistently produced the best results, blending everything evenly from pesto to soup. While it couldn't blend nut butter or crush ice, I'm not sure that there's a personal blender on the market that can, and it was definitely the best for thick smoothies. I also liked the color options – I tested a dark blue model. It offers two speeds: 'pulse' and 'blend'. It's a shame that … While the Beast's jars are made of plastic – the same BPA-free material that the Vitamix uses – they're so heavy I briefly thought they might be made from very thick glass. I recently deadlifted nearly 240lbs, but even I wouldn't want to carry a smoothie this heavy to the gym. Capacity: 28.75 ouncesPower: 1,200 watts / 120 voltsSpeeds: two (pulse and blend) $89.19 at Amazon$79.99 at Kohl's If you want a personal blender that will make good smoothies and shakes you can take to the gym – or you balked at the Beast's $219 price tag – the Nutribullet is your friend. At just $88, the Nutribullet blended smoothies that were only slightly more textured than those of its more expensive counterpart, and it handily blended soup and pesto without any problem. It also comes with a second jar, a lid for drinking and a clunky-looking but totally effective detachable handle. This jar was basically designed to be thrown in a gym bag. 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Because the base is so narrow, it's difficult to clean by hand, as the area beneath the blades is a challenge to reach. Capacity: 48 ounces Power: 1,000 power watts/600 blending watts Speeds: two Choosing your blender will have a lot to do with how you want to use it. Do you just want to make shakes for the gym, or are you an obsessive home cook who has always wanted to make hummus? When it comes to jug blenders, the motor's power is the factor that most contributes to the blender's ability to do its job, but jug shape also comes into play. A more narrow, round base will blend small quantities better than a wider, square base. If you're just looking for a smoothie-making machine, or you have very limited counter space or budget, a personal blender is likely your best bet, thanks to its small footprint and because the jar turns into a to-go vessel for your drink. Jug blenders are better for larger jobs, or thicker mixtures, such as thick smoothies, nut butters, spreads and soups. 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These are the blenders that I tested, in alphabetical order: The Beast Mega 1200 Plus Blendtec Total Blender Classic Breville Fresh & Furious Cuisinart Hurricane Nutribullet Pro 900 Classic Series Heritage Blender with 6-Cup Glass Jar Vitamix 5200 Vitamix Ascent X5 Zwilling Enfinigy Personal Blender Marian Bull has 10 years' experience in recipe reviewing – and in cleaning her blender. She has written about food for publications including Bon Appétit, the New York Times and the Los Angeles Times. This article was originally published on 7 August 2025. Reviews published in the Filter may be periodically updated to reflect new products and at the editor's discretion. The date of an article's most recent update can be found in the timestamp at the top of the page.
