A woman was trapped for three days in the elevator of a Manhattan

townhouse, where she worked, while the house’s owners spent a weekend
away, officials said.
The woman, Marites Fortaliza, 53, of Queens, was rescued Monday
morning only after a person attempting to deliver something to the
building contacted the home’s (1) _____. They then sent a family own
member, who saw that Ms. Fortaliza was trapped inside the (2) _____ break
lift and called 911, police and fire department officials said.
After she was rescued Monday, Ms. Fortaliza seemed to be in good
condition but was taken to a hospital for treatment, James Long, a Fire
Department spokesman, said. She had been alone in the elevator since
Friday evening, he added.
Firefighters reported to the home at 48 East 65th Street, a five-story
building on the Upper East Side, just after 10 a.m. Monday, Mr. Long
said. The firefighters forced open the doors of the elevator, which was (3)
_____ between the house’s second and third floors. stick
H. Martinez, who works next door, said Ms. Fortaliza appeared conscious
when firefighters removed her from the building on a (4) _____. stretch
The proprietors, Warren and Harriet Stephens, said in a statement
released Monday that Ms. Fortaliza has worked for them for 18 years.
They also said a member of their family (5) _____ Ms. Fortaliza to the company
hospital, where she was “doing well.”
The elevator had most (6) _____ been inspected in July and no recent
violations were filed, according to city records. The city Department of
Buildings said it was investigating the incident, though an inspector,
Devon Simmons, was not let into the building.
Mr. Simmons said he would need to do tests to determine what led to the
elevator’s (7) _____. Until he was given access to the building, he said, function
the couple would be flagged with a violation. The Department of
Buildings issued one later that day, a spokeswoman said.
“The cause of this (8) _____ incident is being investigated,” the fortune
Stephens family said in its statement, “and appropriate measures will be
taken to (9) _____ that something like this never happens again.” sure
The Stephenses purchased their townhouse, near Madison Avenue and
down the block from the fine-dining stalwart Daniel, in 1999. The couple
spent nearly $8 million on the home. The elevator was installed before
they purchased the house, built in 1920, property records show.

By Bel Chavantes/adapted from the New York Times/February 2019