Coroner unable to answer questions in escalator death

CTV Montreal: A tribute to Naima Montrealers gathered to mourn the loss of Naima Rharouity, the woman that tragically died when her scarf got stuck in an escalator.

A coroner has been unable to determine the exact sequence of events that led to a woman dying when her scarf was tangled in an escalator.

Naima Rharouity, 47, was strangled on January 30, 2014 while entering the Fabre metro station.

In his report Coroner Paul Dionne was unable to determine if Rharouity fell while on the escalator and then had her scarf caught at the bottom, or if the scarf became tangled first.

No video cameras in the metro system showed the exact spot where Rharouity died, but the coroner was able to determine that less than one minute and ten seconds passed between her stepping onto the escalator and a passerby spotting her trapped at the bottom of the moving stairs.

Rharouity died at the scene with her hair, scarf, and coat trapped.

An autopsy showed that all the injuries inflicted could have been caused by the fall and the entanglement, and that Rharouity died of asphyxiation.

Dionne also examined the maintenance record for the escalator, which was the scene of four incidents, involving falls or clothes being caught, since 2012.

Out of 20 other escalators examined over the same time frame, there were 24 incidents, only two of which involved clothing being caught in the escalator's comb.

Dionne said Rharouity's death was an accident. He recommendations include:

The coroner noted the STM internal report makes similar recommendations and the transit agency has already started making changes.

While it says its escalators are regularly and rigourously maintained, the STM is reviewing its current maintenance program.

“We have some 300 in total in the network, a monthly inspection, and twice a year there's a major review of all those escalators. That's part of the maintenance program,” said STM spokesperson Isabelle Tremblay.

The STM launched an awareness campaign last month, posting signs in various metro stations about the dangers of escalators to prevent accidents.