Have you ever survived two extremely unusual life-threatening disasters in one day? Betty Lou Oliver was one of the rare individuals who could have answered yes to that. Betty was on duty as an elevator operator on the morning of July 27, 1945. It was a normal day, until a B-25 Mitchell bomber slammed into the Empire State building between the 78th and 80th floors. Lt. Col. William Smith, Jr. had gotten disoriented by a thick fog and flew into the building, killing himself, his two passengers, and 11 people in the building. Betty was thrown from her elevator on the 80th floor and suffered severe burns. Firefighters quickly put out the fire, thus setting a record for highest major fire ever put out. Betty was given first aid and put in an elevator for her trip to the hospital. The damaged elevator cables snapped and Betty had some time to have her 20-year life flash before her eyes as she plunged to her death. Miraculously, she survived, but with a broken pelvis, back, and neck. She still holds the record for longest surviving elevator drop. She got her fifteen minutes of fame as “The Elevator Girl” and then went on with her life. But not as an elevator operator, of course. She had three kids. She probably cared little when they fell down and skinned a knee. She died at age 74.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1945_Empire_State_Building_B-25_crash
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