Twenty people, including two children, are trapped for nearly six hours inside an elevator at the Tokyo Skytree, the world's tallest broadcasting tower, after it makes an emergency stop about 30 meters above ground.  Around 1,200 visitors on the observation deck are temporarily stranded. No injuries are reported.  It marks the third elevator entrapment incident at the landmark tower in about a decade.

Tourists are trapped in Tokyo Skytree's elevator

Visitors packed popular tourist destinations in Tokyo on February 23.

The Tokyo Skytree is closed for the day.

However, the famous Tokyo Skytree was temporarily closed for a thorough elevator inspection.

We’ll come again. We can’t get on the elevator because they’re doing an inspection.

On the evening of February 22, an emergency call was made to police reporting that an elevator had stopped at Tokyo Skytree, the world's tallest broadcasting tower at 634 meters.
Shortly after 8PM on February 22, two elevators stopped 30 meters above ground while descending. 20 people, including two children, were trapped for about six hours in one of the elevators.

Person who was on observation deck / We were told that we wouldn’t be able to move for a while.  Everyone sat on the floor for about an hour. I thought we might have to spend the night there.

It is not the first time visitors have been trapped in this very elevator at Tokyo Skytree.

NTV Reporter / People who were trapped in the elevator were rescued and came out.

People were just about to take the elevator before it stopped.

Traveler/ The elevator stopped right in front of us, just when we were trying to get in. It made this huge banging sound.

Traveler/ The elevator had not fallen, but it made a sound as if it had fallen. We got scared of going up.

20 passengers were trapped for 6 hours in this roughly 2-meter-square closed space.

Approximately 1,200 people on the observation deck were left stranded.

A visitor who got stuck at the observatory deck showed us photos they took with their smartphone.

There was a long line going way behind.

Reporter/Are there still many people up there?

Traveler/ Yes.
 

These visitors had traveled from Ishikawa Prefecture.

Traveler/We experienced the Noto Peninsula earthquake, so being trapped inside was terrifying. I was wondering what would happen.

Passengers who were on the observation deck were gradually brought down to the ground floor using another functioning lift.

The 20 people trapped inside were also rescued by moving to another elevator through a plank laid across an emergency door installed on the side.

No visitors reported injuries or illness. 

The day after the trapping incident…

NTV Reporter / The entrance in front of the observation deck is empty. Staff are handing out paper.

Tokyo Skytree was closed on February 23 for an elevator inspection. Operators announced the cause was under investigation.

Tokyo Skytree Town PR / Visitors were trapped in the elevator once each in 2015 and 2017. We currently do not know if the cause of this incident is the same as the past.

In 2015 and 2017, the elevator suddenly stopped and trapped passengers as well. The cause of the entrapment in 2017 was never identified.

Tokyo Skytree announced it will remain closed on February 24 to continue investigation.