By By Aya Lowe, Staff Reporter www.gulfnews.com
Fourteen visitors to the At the Top observatory deck in Burj Khalifa were trapped for an hour in the elevator on Saturday.
The group, which included a child, found themselves stuck at a height of 430m en-route to the observatory deck which is located on the 124th floor.
The temporary freeze also led to delays for visitors waiting on the ground level where entry is controlled by 30 minute intervals to ensure there is no overcrowding at the lifts and at the deck.
A spokesperson from Emaar Properties issued a statement saying. “The elevator of At the Top was briefly stalled and operations were resumed soon after. Visitors were safely transported to level 124. The safety of our guests is of paramount importance and all elevators in Burj Khalifa are tested and function to the highest safety standards.”
The elevators have capacity to hold up to 14 people and travel at 10 metres per second from the ground level to the 124th floor in less than 60 seconds. Some have been programmed to permit controlled evacuations for fires or security reasons.
The Burj Khalifa’s observatory deck has been operational from the 5th January 3pm. Since then, visitors have flocked to Dubai Mall’s latest attraction leading to a sell out of tickets. Visitors are advised to book in advance.
