UAE: Residents forced to climb up to 15 floors after building lifts stop working for over a week

Residents of a 15-story high-rise building in Sharjah's Al Nahda area have been grappling with a major challenge over the past week. Ever since all three elevators in their apartment complex ceased functioning, people have been climbing as many as 315 stairs whenever they need to access/exit the building.

The tenants have been complaining about their plight, calling the situation "miserable", as some reported feeling lightheaded and fainting on occasion while trekking up and down the high-rise.

R.K. (name withheld on request) expressed her distress and said, "It's been a harrowing week. All three lifts of our building have not been working since last Saturday. My husband, who suffers from high blood pressure (BP), lost consciousness yesterday (Sept 6). We had to rush him to a neighbour's residence and administer sugar to stabilise him. People are falling sick and becoming unwell. We've had to take time off from work due to this situation. This is unacceptable."

She added, "A couple of days back, I left my children at someone else's house as they couldn't climb up so many staircases, tired after school."

Similarly, another building resident highlighted how their numerous appeals at different quarters have gone unanswered and seemingly unnoticed.

Mohammed Hassan (name changed) said, "I live on the 10th floor, in addition to a couple of extra parking levels. So, it's nearly 12 floors. Every time I pick up my children from school, I can't help but feel sorry for them. We've endured the ordeal of climbing up and down these stairs for far too many days, and yet nobody is responding."

Online grocery deliveries have ceased providing service at the building, leaving the residents without essential supplies unless they make a trip down. Even obtaining drinking water has become a daunting task.

"Nobody is coming and supplying any groceries to our building. Even to get drinking water is a challenge. How can we climb up with so many gallons of water for the entire family, and drinking water is something that we can't do without? We need to plan our day to maximise work in one trip. I have to go to the office, bring my children from school, and then again go back. So, I have to do this three to four times a day. Apart from being time-consuming, it's also extremely exhausting. My six-year-old daughter became unwell because of this. We have not received any concrete response from anyone so far. It's been almost a week now, and nothing has been fixed yet. This is outrageous," added Hassan.

A.N., who has been living in this building for the past eight months, said they initially encountered problems with only one elevator while the other two remained operational. However, for the past month, only one has been functioning.

This problem emerged following a recent change in management.

She said, "Every day we have to climb up these stairs, all the way up until the eighth floor, which is technically the 12th floor if we include the parking levels. We are tired of this drill. Due to this, we are getting late to work.

"Pity that toddlers and children must do the same while attending school. In one of the initial days, people waited for long hours downstairs, hoping the lifts would start functioning as it's difficult to carry children and walk upstairs. But nothing was done about it. Everyone has been trying to get in touch with the authorities. But there is no response. We have knocked on all doors but haven't heard from anyone who can alleviate our situation yet."

Meanwhile, multiple calls to the building management went unanswered when Khaleej Times attempted to reach the concerned party for comment.

This report will be updated if the building management responds to KT.

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