I-Team: Mall elevator inspections

HOLYOKE, Mass. (WWLP) - A high traffic elevator you may have taken a ride on has an inspection certificate that expired one year ago.

The 22News I-Team reveals the story behind the apparently expired certificate.

We're talking about the elevator in the center of the Holyoke Mall.  A viewer called the 22News I-Team and said that the elevator had an expired inspection card.  So the I-Team went to the mall and found out the viewer was right about the certificate.  When we dug a little more, the I-Team discovered the state printed out an incorrect inspection certificate.

When you ride the elevator in the center of Holyoke Mall you will see that the inspection certificate expired on January 31st, 2012.  When in actuality it expires January 31st, 2013 and the elevator is in compliance.  Holyoke Mall's general manager told 22News the elevator is safe and they have a contractor overseeing the elevators and escalators on a daily basis.

"The contract covers regular repair and maintenance then they also do preventative maintenance, they're responsible to schedule inspections with the state", says Holyoke Mall General Manager Bill Rogalski.

"We require every unit to be inspected annually as you know.  It's great that the mall has a maintenance
company out there and they're maintaining those units, but the actual inspection is done by the department", says Massachusetts Department of Public Safety Commissioner Thomas Gatzunis.

That's not the only elevator in question.  Three of the five public elevators in the mall had expired inspection certificates.  Commissioner Gatzunis confirmed all of these elevators are scheduled for testing in February.

The state bears the responsibility for inspecting the elevators, not the mall, and there's no reason to believe the elevators are not safe.