A part owner of the Bangkok Bistro was killed in a freak elevator accident inside his downtown Schenectady restaurant early Saturday morning.
Israel “Bobby” Silva, co-owner and worker at the Bistro, had his head trapped by a dumbwaiter inside the basement kitchen at about 1:10 a.m., police said.
Silva, 30, was loading food into the dumbwaiter, a small freight elevator commonly used in the restaurant business to transport food and dishes easily between floors. Police said another employee activated the elevator from the floor above, trapping Silva’s head and causing severe head and neck injury.
The Schenectady Fire Department responded to the call at 268 State St., where they attempted to treat Silva’s injuries.
“But due to the extensive nature of the injury, he was pronounced dead at the scene,” according to a news release issued Saturday night by police.
Police Sgt. Matthew Dearing said at least one other employee witnessed the accident in the basement, which occurred less than an hour before the Thai restaurant closed.
“I don’t know how many people exactly or who, but there were other people there,” he said.
Dearing said the incident was just a bad accident, and that no charges are being lodged. Because it was an on-the-job injury, he said an outside agency would probably come in and investigate the restaurant’s operation of the dumbwaiter.
A sign hung on the Bistro door Saturday saying it will be closed until further notice.
A 21-year-old waitress made national headlines last year when she died while on the job in Oklahoma City. She had plunged down a lift shaft to her death while operating a malfunctioning dumbwaiter.
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