The incident took place on Sunday morning in the city’s Maracanã district. It was captured by a security camera, the footage of which was provided to the media by the AP news agency.
The woman arrived at the scene as a passenger of the motorcyclist. She crossed the street and stepped onto the opposite sidewalk, all the while looking at the display of her phone.
When she fell into the shaft, the motorcycle driver immediately rushed to her aid, but was unable to pull her out himself. Only the alarmed police and firemen managed to do this, and they took the woman to the hospital. According to the G1 server, she suffered unspecified severe injuries.
A more detailed evaluation of street camera footage showed that a few hours before the accident, two men tried to steal cables from the shaft at night. They failed to do so, so they left the area, but they did not adequately secure the hatch.
The shaft belongs to a private telecommunications company, which replaced the polyethylene cover the same day and closed it so that it would not rotate.
According to the CNN Brasil server, the town hall of the city district confirmed that the number of cases of damage to public and private property has been increasing recently, and with it financial losses and danger for the population. “Tests have shown that polyethylene is a durable and reliable material. But it will be necessary to tighten the penalties for those who commit crimes against property,” the town hall emphasized.
