"Straight out of a Final Destination film": Sam Waisbren elevator video resurfaces years after tragedy

Sam Waisbren tragically passed away in August 2019 in an elevator accident. Footage of him being crushed to death by an elevator was made available online following the tragedy. As per research done on internet trends with the help of Google, it seems like the video of the same has been circulating online recently. Reacting to the disturbing footage, one netizen commented:

Netizen reacts to the viral elevator video (Image via GettinSpooky/YouTube)

The netizen compared the elevator incident with the cult movie Final Destination where people briefly cheated death until they reached the final moment of their demise.

Sam Waisbren was 30 years old when he passed away. According to his father, Charles, he worked in software sales. On a regular morning, the former was tragically crushed to death by a lift in his luxury New York high-rise apartment, Manhattan Promenade.

Trigger Warning: The following article contains disturbing content. Reader’s discretion is advised.

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Sam Waisbren's elevator video resurfaced online recently

In the video which has reappeared online, people can be seen exiting an elevator as others waited to board the same. Sam Waisbren was seen extending his arm and trying to plant his feet on the lobby floor when the lift tragically moved downwards.

Waisbren was trapped between the lift vehicle and the shaft wall while being propelled by the lift's movement toward the basement. An unidentified stranger at the scene could not believe what had happened and appeared to be hopeful of Waisbren being alive. However, the latter was pronounced dead at the scene.

News outlets also revealed that other apartment residents were still present in the elevator when the tragedy occurred. They were not injured and had to wait for firefighters to arrive.

Netizens claimed that the video in question went viral on TikTok recently which led them to further investigate the matter. This must have led them to the GettinSpooky YouTube channel which had uploaded the video a year ago. At the time of writing this article, the video on YouTube had amassed over 84K views.

Netizens claim that they discovered the incident on TikTok (Image via GettinSpooky/YouTube)

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Claims of the elevator malfunctioning came to light following the tragedy

Days after the Wisconsin native’s death, the Department of Buildings received a complaint stating that the Manhattan Promenade apartment’s lifts were faulty. The complaint read:

“A resident was killed in the elevator. Every other week someone is getting stuck in the elevator.”

It was also revealed that the lift that killed Sam Waisbren was installed in 1997 and had not raised any alarms of safety violations. However, his father said in an interview with Good Morning America that his son had complained about the elevator service in the past.

Charles said:

“One of the elevators was always out of service and he was frustrated by it. I know the other tenants were frustrated by it and we thought it was ridiculous… the elevator was always in disarray and they’re paying a gazillion dollars in rent every month. The least the building could do is provide safety.”

The luxury apartment building could be rented for $3,600 monthly in 2019. A builder inspector had also noted that the apartment complex had “17 past building violations.”

Comment byu/pshhaww_ from discussion interrifying

Following Waisbren’s death, a GoFundMe was set up to start the Sam Waisbren Milwaukee Memorial Baseball Program in his memory.