A 56-year-old Donike Gocaj is a woman who lost her life late Monday night after stepping out of her parked car and plunging into an uncovered manhole on one of New York City’s busiest streets. The tragic incident has raised serious questions about public safety and utility maintenance in Midtown Manhattan.
What happened?
Shortly after 11:19pm ET on May 18, Donike Gocaj of Briarcliff Manor had just parked her Mercedes-Benz SUV near West 52nd Street and Fifth Avenue, right outside the iconic Cartier store at 653 Fifth Ave when she stepped out and fell roughly 10 feet straight down into an open manhole, according to the New York Police Department.
Officers who arrived at the scene found her unconscious and unresponsive inside the hole. She was rushed to New York Presbyterian Hospital, where she was later pronounced dead. The Office of the Chief Medical Examiner is yet to officially determine the cause of death and no arrests have been made, per USA Today.
Footage from the scene, published by Fox 5 New York showed the manhole located just a foot or two from the driver’s side door of her SUV, which makes it nearly impossible to avoid upon exiting the vehicle. By Tuesday morning, the opening had been covered and cordoned off.
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Family’s grief and unanswered questions
On Tuesday morning, Gocaj’s relatives visited the site, hugging and consoling one another as they struggled to make sense of what had happened, as per CBS News New York. Family members described her as a loving mother of two and grandmother of two grandchildren, according to ABC 7 New York.
Her daughter-in-law was visibly shaken and she told CBS News New York that there were no cones, warning signs or barriers of any kind around the manhole at the time of the incident and that the family was still trying to process the loss, saying it was still “so fresh.”
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Con Edison under scrutiny
The manhole belongs to utility company Con Edison, which confirmed it is now investigating how the cover came to be left off. No construction work was taking place in the area at the time, according to ABC 7 New York cited by USA Today. The manhole cover itself was found roughly 15 feet away from the opening.
“We are deeply saddened to confirm that a member of the public has died after falling into an open manhole. We are actively investigating how this occurred. Our thoughts are with the individual’s family, and safety remains our top priority,” Con Edison said in a statement.
