City says elevators in courthouse accident just passed inspection

A Center City courthouse was evacuated Thursday morning and shut down after an elevator accident injured two people.

The incident took place in the Criminal Justice Center at 13th and Filbert streets when one elevator accidentally went through the ceiling of the elevator shaft, according to city officials.

“The cause is currently undergoing state investigation,” Mayor Jim Kenney’s office said in a statement.

The passenger in that elevator car, a sheriff’s deputy, was critically injured, the Inquirer reported. Falling debris struck an elevator car below, injuring one passenger inside that car.

Remaining elevators in the courthouse were again cleared Thursday by state inspectors, but under city Licenses & Inspections code, all elevators in the courthouse will be closed until repairs are complete.

According to the mayor’s office, city records show that elevators in the courthouse were last inspected June 14.