For building owners across the Las Vegas Valley, an elevator entrapment isn’t just an inconvenience for tenants or guests — it becomes a legal and liability event the moment it happens. Whether you manage a high rise resort on the Strip, a medical center in Henderson, or an office park in Summerlin, Nevada law outlines exactly how you must prepare for, communicate through, and resolve an entrapment. And the state leaves very little room for interpretation.

The Mechanical Compliance Section (MCS) of the Nevada Division of Industrial Relations enforces elevator safety in Nevada. Additional support is provided by local fire jurisdictions, such as Las Vegas Fire & Rescue and the Clark County Fire Department. Serious civil liability, fines, and shutdown orders can result from failing to provide the required communication equipment or allowing unauthorized personnel to attempt an extraction.

The following requirements must be put in place to ensure compliance and protect occupants.

1. Two Way Emergency Communication (ASME A17.1)

When someone is trapped in an elevator the first line of protection is provided by the cab’s emergency communication system. Under ASME A17.1, a dedicated functioning two-way communication line is required for every elevator.
Key requirements include:

• The call must reach a continuously monitored station or a 24 hour answering service capable of dispatching a licensed elevator mechanic immediately.
• Automated answering systems are prohibited — a live responder must answer.
• Modernized systems must support two way text or visual communication for passengers who are deaf or hard of hearing.
If your building’s system predates these requirements, it should be evaluated during your next modernization review.

A critical Las Vegas specific risk: copper landline retirement
Many older emergency phones still rely on copper landlines. Carriers nationwide are retiring copper infrastructure, and once that line goes dead, your emergency phone doestoo, instantly creating a compliance violation. Upgrading to cellular or IP based emergency phone systems is one of the most important (and overlooked) steps Las Vegas property managers should be budgeting for.

2. Who Is Legally Allowed to Open the Doors

This is where many Las Vegas property managers make costly mistakes.
Under Nevada regulations and ASME A17.4, only the following are legally authorized to open hoistway doors and extract passengers:

• Licensed elevator mechanics
• Properly trained fire and rescue personnel
There are no exceptions for building maintenance staff, security teams, or anyone with access to a hoistway key.

Why does this rule exist
Hoistway door release tools (drop keys, lunar keys) disengage the safety interlocks that keep the elevator from moving while doors are open. If someone without proper training uses one, the car can shift unexpectedly, a major injury risk and a major liability.

When to call fire and rescue
Fire crews should only be contacted when there is a true medical emergency inside the cab. Their priority is rapid extraction, which may involve forcible entry tools that can cause tens of thousands of dollars in damage to hoistway framing and door equipment.

For standard entrapments with no medical crisis, your first call should be to your elevator service provider, not 911.

3. Logbooks and Incident Documentation

In Nevada, if it isn’t documented, it didn’t happen, at least as far as inspectors and insurance adjusters are concerned. Certain elevator incidents must also be reported directly to the Mechanical Compliance Section MCS.

Your building should maintain a secure, on site logbook that records:

• The exact time the entrapment call came through the cab phone
• When the licensed elevator technician arrived
• How many passengers were safely extracted
• The mechanical or electrical cause of the shutdown (door interlock fault, power surge, gate switch failure, etc.)
• Repairs or part replacements completed before returning the elevator to service
A clean, consistent logbook can be the difference between a routine inspection and a prolonged one, and it’s the first thing attorneys and adjusters request if an incident escalates.

4. Preventing Entrapments Before They Happen

The best entrapment response is the one you never need.
Many building owners focus only on emergency procedures, but preventing shutdowns is equally important, especially in high traffic Las Vegas properties.
Smart monitoring technology
Systems like Giga Lift Smart IoT Elevator Services monitor elevator diagnostics in real time, detecting early warning signs such as:

• Slowing door cycle times
• Voltage irregularities
• Fault pattern changes

Catching these issues early allows for scheduled repairs instead of emergency extractions.

Close out deficiencies quickly

A surprising number of entrapments stem from previously flagged issues that were never repaired. Staying current on annual inspections and deficiency corrections, worn rollers, slipping gibs, and failing backup batteries is one of the simplest ways to prevent shutdowns with passengers inside.

FAQ’s

>>Who is legally allowed to extract passengers from a stuck elevator in Nevada?
Only licensed elevator mechanics or trained fire and rescue personnel. Building maintenance staff and security are not authorized to perform hoistway door extractions.

>>What is required in an elevator’s emergency communication system?
Under ASME A17.1, the system must connect to a continuously monitored station or 24 hour answering service, must not route to automated systems, and modernized systems must support two way text or visual communication.

>>Do Las Vegas building owners have to report elevator entrapments?
Certain elevator accidents and incidents must be reported to the Nevada Division of Industrial Relations’ Mechanical Compliance Section MCS, in addition to maintaining an internal logbook.

>>Can building maintenance staff use a hoistway key to free trapped passengers?
No. Hoistway keys disengage safety interlocks, and using one without proper training is dangerous and illegal.

Secure Your 24/7 Entrapment Defense with AR Elevator USA
When an elevator stalls, every minute matters, for the people inside and for your liability exposure. Rapid-response troubleshooting and full elevator code compliance based on Nevada and Clark County regulations, rather than generic national standards, are relied on by property owners across Southern Nevada through AR Elevator USA.

Straightforward maintenance contracts with transparent pricing and 24/7 emergency response included from day one are provided.
Call AR Elevator USA:
702 810 2757
702 463 6430

Written by Eng. Houssam Zammam