A woman fell four floors to her death after walking into an elevator shaft when the doors opened but the elevator was absent. Clelia Ditano, 25, died on Sunday in her apartment building in Fasano, in the province of Brindisi in southern Italy. Ditano pressed the elevator button and walked through the open doors without realizing the elevator was not there.
She plummeted into the empty shaft and landed on the top of the elevator, which was halted on the first floor, local media reported. She was killed instantly on impact, according to firefighters who retrieved her body. The incident has left other residents of the apartment building in shock.
Tragic Death
Clelia’s father tragically found her body on Sunday morning after calling her phone, which he heard ringing inside the elevator. He immediately alerted emergency services, who arrived at the scene around 8 am, as reported by local media.
Just before her tragic death, Clelia had posted a photo on her Instagram story wearing an off-white top and matching skirt, seemingly preparing for a night out.
She also shared a picture of herself in a black dress with a chilling caption on the day of her passing: “Here’s to what’s to come.”
The 25-year-old, who worked as a cleaner at several bed and breakfasts in the area, enjoyed dancing and socializing, according to her friends.
Heartbreakingly, her friend Ilenia wrote in a tribute to Clelia: “It wasn’t supposed to happen like this. You were supposed to achieve all your dreams, create the family you wanted, find true love…”
Family and Friends Devastated
Ilenia said that Clelia’s death would create a huge emptiness in her life because Clelia was “a vital part” of it. Another friend questioned, “How could someone pass away in such a manner?” A third friend added, “No one should meet their end like this.”
“It wasn’t supposed to go this way… Beautiful and kind, you had a life ahead of you to live,” Clelia’s friend Betty commented on the last picture on Clelia’s Instagram account.
Police officers and firefighters are collaborating to investigate why the elevator doors opened when the elevator was not present and why the lift was stranded several floors below.
“We can assume a malfunction of the locking system because the door should only open when the cabin is at the floor,” an investigator told local media.
