Airport Management Expert Witness Opines on Injury Caused by Escalator

This case involves an incident at an airport. A young boy fell while going down an escalator and got his hand stuck in the moving steps. As a result his hand was severely injured.

Question(s) For Expert Witness

1) What kinds of emergency stop safety mechanisms are there for high traffic escalators? Should it be so easy for a child's hand to get stuck in the machinery?

Expert Witness Response E-007084

I have a great deal of experience with this type of issue. There are numerous emergency stop safety mechanisms present on escalators. If the injury occurred at the side of the step, then the switches involved are the skirt switches mounted at the top and bottom of the escalator. If the injury occurred at the combplate, there is a switch that senses the presence of a body part. Exact requirements are code mandated, and dependent on the code in effect at the time of installation. It should not be so easy for a child's hand to get stuck in the machinery if the maximum side of step clearances are maintained or if the combplate fingers are penetrating 3/8" or more into the oncoming step treads.