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70-year-old trapped on balcony rescued after 18 hours

Published: 15 Apr. 2025, 18:34

A makeshift rope of clothing dangling from the apartment balcony in central Seoul on April 10. [JOONGANG ILBO]

Police rescued a woman in her 70s who spent nearly 18 hours trapped on the balcony of her high-rise apartment in central Seoul after she threw a makeshift rope made out of clothing and dropped it over the railing to signal for help, authorities said Tuesday.

The Jongno Police Precinct said two police officers found the woman at around 10 a.m. on April 10 in an apartment near Dongnimmun Station in central Seoul.

She had gone out to water her plants on the evening of April 9 when the balcony door closed and automatically locked behind her.

With no one able to hear her calls for help due to traffic noise from the road below, she remained stranded through the night. Temperatures dropped, and there was even snow early the next morning, raising the risk of hypothermia.

Running out of options, the woman tied together several pieces of her clothing to create a rope and threw them over the edge of the balcony.

The two police officers patrolling the area noticed the dangling cloth and sensed something was wrong. They entered the building, reached a neighboring unit and confirmed the woman’s situation.

The officers then obtained the access code to the apartment and safely brought her back inside.

A police source praised the officers' quick thinking.

“They responded to a signal that could have gone unnoticed and acted swiftly to save her life,” the source said.

Translated from the JoongAng Ilbo using generative AI and edited by Korea JoongAng Daily staff.

BY JEONG JAE-HONG [[email protected]]