Trapped in an Elevator

I had a strange experience Friday night. After work, some friends and I went to the San Francisco Japantown to watch the new Pixar movie, Up in 3D at the Theatre Kabuki run by Sundance Cinemas. After parking in their underground garage, we went to take the elevator up to the shops to have a quick dinner.

As the elevator doors closed after entering the elevator at the garage underground level 1, we pressed the button for the shops. Nothing happened. We pressed it again... and again. Nothing happened. Giving up, we pressed the open door button. Nothing happened. Trying the button for garage underground level 1 made it light up, but nothing else happened. Then, pressing garage level two, it also lit up, and the indicator light changed from garage level 1 to garage level 2, but that was about all. After pressing buttons for another while, we started pressing the alarm button. Throughout all of this, even as we were in a hurry to get to our movie on time, and my apartment mate Ben was on the phone organizing to meet with another friend, we were just kind of in disbelief and laughing and joking about it.

Soon, we tried pressing the emergency phone button. As we all waited silently expecting someone to pick up. We heard the phone ring. Then a click. As we were just about to speak, a recorded message began to play. "Elevator emergency in the Kinokuniya building, elevator one. Please send assistance." The message was followed by another click, and the red light on the telephone box went off. "Is that all we get?" Someone commented.

After pressing the buttons some more and pressing the alarm button, I decided I wasn't convinced that someone was actually coming, and if they did, we won't get out in time for the movie. "Alright, I'm going to try to open the door." I said half jokingly. Putting my fingers through the crack, I managed to shift the door a tiny bit as I pried with my fingers. Not really having an effect, I sat back to wait.

But then, Ian, one of my university friends, started pulling on the left side of the door. Figuring that there wasn't anything to lose, I pried on the right side of the door, and amazingly, we made a small gap in the door before giving up. As the door bounced back I managed to have my fingers escape in time with only some minor crushing.

Encouraged by the small movement, we tried again. After obtaining a better grip, as all of us watched in disbelief, the door opened wider and wider, and popped open under its own power after opening a crack of about 10 or 20 centimetres. None of us said anything, and we just walked out of the elevator, a level below where we started. "Did that really just happen?" Someone asked.