PANICKED pensioners keep getting trapped in a faulty lift and have had to be freed by firefighters.

Fed-up tenants at the flats in Brookthorpe Close in Warndon, Worcester, said the lift - the only one in the building - has broken down a number of times in the last six years, sometimes for weeks at a time.

Several people, some with serious health conditions, have been stuck inside the lift until firefighters let them out. Other tenants are frightened to use the lift in case they get stuck. When it breaks, those with serious mobility problems who cannot use the stairs are effectively 'prisoners in their own homes'.

Worcester News: Brookthorpe Close in Warndon where the lift keeps breaking down Brookthorpe Close in Warndon where the lift keeps breaking down (Image: James Connell/Newsquest)

One man, aged 96, who lives there would struggle to get up and down the stairs, residents said. 

Rob Wilding, 65, who suffers from heart problems said: "It's been playing up since I've been here. I have been here almost six years. 

"I have been stuck in the lift twice when it has broken down. There was five people in there when it broke down on one occasion."

Worcester News: FAULTY: The lift at Brookthorpe Close in Warndon, Worcester FAULTY: The lift at Brookthorpe Close in Warndon, Worcester (Image: James Connell/Newsquest)

The first time it happened, around six months ago, firefighters were called out and let him out within about 15 minutes. However, four days later he got stuck in the lift again but was only trapped for 11 minutes.

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The engineer was able to open the inner door and use the latch to get out, having previously watched firefighters do it.

"I found out I'm not claustrophobic anyway," he said.

He estimates '30 to 40 different blokes' have tried to fix the lift in vain.

Geoffrey Day, 76, who suffers from COPD was stuck in the lift for 45 minutes in April this year, raising the alarm on the intercom.

Mr Day said: "I was panicking. You feel yourself going down. There's a jerk as the lift shudders to a halt."

He described firefighters using a crowbar to get to him inside the lift.

"It breaks down and it might last four days before it happens again. You can't trust it. It's a nightmare. Some people chance it but they're frightened to death to use the lift," he said.

Sue Gardner, 61, said: "I feel so sorry for the people who get trapped upstairs. They can't get to meetings and can't go away with family."

The daughter of one resident said: "My mum can't get downstairs without the lift. My mum has been trapped in the lift. Even her hairdresser got trapped in the lift," she said.

Cllr Jill Desayrah, the Warndon councillor, says Platform Housing, which manages the 28 flats, has promised to replace the lift in six to nine months and install stairlifts within two months.

She added: "I want to be sure they're going to do it as fast as they can. I appreciate it's going to take some time. The stairlift in the interim is another essential consideration. I just want to hold them to both promises."  

A spokesperson for Platform Housing said: "We sincerely apologise for the inconvenience to our customers, the lift will be replaced as soon as possible, in the meantime we will be installing temporary stairlifts.