Two Injured After Car Plunges Down Elevator Shaft of UES Parking Garage

Two people were hospitalized Tuesday morning after a car plummeted down the elevator shaft of an Upper East Side parking garage. A parking attendant at the East 76th Street and 1st Avenue garage reportedly drove the vehicle into the car elevator on the building's fifth floor, but the elevator was not there, CBS reported. He and the car plunged down five stories before hitting the ground. At around 9:45 a.m., the fire department arrived on the scene at 355 East 76th Street, which houses a Hertz Rent-a-Car business, according to NY1. Firefighters rescued the driver, who was trapped inside the vehicle, as well as an individual who was in the elevator on the ground floor at the time of the accident. Neighbors reported that there were at least 10 emergency vehicles on the scene, in addition to a helicopter hovering over the building. Fire and police officials closed off the sidewalk to passersby on both sides of the street. The rescued driver and another victim were transported to New York Presbyterian-Cornell Hospital to be treated for what are believed to be non-life-threatening injuries. NYC Department of Buildings records show that the garage faced a code violation in May 2009 for non-compliance related to maintaining elevator service equipment. The complaint was later resolved. [caption id="attachment_51369" align="alignleft" width="300" caption="The fallen vehicle landed upside down on the ground level.                                  (Photo Courtesy of @FDNY)"](http://nypress.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/07/large-3.jpeg)[/caption]   [caption id="attachment_51373" align="alignleft" width="300" caption="The car extracted from the elevator was completely crushed.                   (Photo Courtesy of @FDNY)"](http://nypress.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/07/large1.jpeg)[/caption] [caption id="attachment_51372" align="alignleft" width="300" caption="FDNY officials carefully removed the car from the elevator.             (Photo Courtesy of @FDNY)"](http://nypress.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/07/large-4.jpeg)[/caption] [caption id="attachment_51367" align="alignleft" width="300" caption="Firefighters extracted an occupant from the fallen car. (Photo Courtesy of @FDNY)"](http://nypress.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/07/large-2.jpeg)[/caption]