Man Gets Trapped Overnight in NYC Bank Vault

He was freed about 9 hours later when vault doors automatically reopened
By Evann Gastaldo,  Newser Staff
Posted Oct 26, 2023 1:38 AM CDT
Man Gets Trapped Overnight in NYC Bank Vault
Stock photo.   (Getty Images / peshkov)

A man accessing his safe deposit box at a New York City bank Tuesday night ended up trapped in the bank's vault when the doors closed around 8:45pm; someone apparently closed them not realizing he was inside. The 23-year-old called 911 and firefighters tried to free him, but ultimately opted to wait until an automatic timer opened the doors again at 6:15am the following morning, CBS News reports. The man was in the basement of the World Diamond Tower in Midtown Manhattan, in a vault owned by DGA Security and used by multiple businesses in the Diamond District, according to FDNY. Inside Edition reports it's where jewelers in the area keep precious gems.

"Once it's closed, it's on a timing mechanism. That vault does not reopen until a certain amount of time passes," an FDNY chief explains. Firefighters attempted to cut through the 30-inch concrete wall of the vault but stopped when they hit a metal plate. "The problem with the plating is we'd have to use our torches on there, which would infect the environment of the person inside the vault," the chief says. Firefighters kept tabs on the man via phone and the cameras inside the vault, and he was checked out by emergency responders on the scene and released with no injuries after he was freed. (More strange stuff stories.)

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