Twelve people, including lawyers and policemen, were trapped in an elevator of the Barisal Chief Judicial Magistrate's Court building on Monday noon.
The incident took place at around 11:15am on the ground floor of the ten-storey building.
After 20 minutes, the elevator door was opened and the persons were rescued.
However, lawyer Fazlul Haque Biswas, Sub-Inspector (SI) Jasim Uddin and Constable Kulsum Akter lost consciousness after getting out of the elevator.
Later, the two other police members also fell sick and were admitted to a hospital.
Confirming the matter, former secretary of Barisal District Bar Association Mokhlesur Rahman Bachchu said: "I was supposed to take part in the hearing of a case on the fifth floor of the building. So, I tried to take the elevator from the ground floor. But seeing the crowd there, I went up to the fifth floor by the stairs.”
After a while, he said, he heard that 12 people had been trapped in the elevator on the ground floor.
“Then I quickly went downstairs and tried to rescue them. Even after trying to break the door with bricks, it could not be opened,” he added.
SI Jasim said: “No switch was working inside the elevator and it was locked. People outside heard our screams and tried to rescue us. After five minutes, everyone was having breathing problems. I lost consciousness when I got out of there.”
Upon hearing the news, District and Sessions Judge Rafiqul Islam and Chief Judicial Magistrate Mahibul Islam visited the spot.
Later, the authorities decided to appoint a liftman during court hours. The Public Works Department has also been asked to take measures to prevent such incidents in future.
