Originally Posted by Arnox

Interesting Fact:

The only known occurrence of an elevator car free falling due to a cable snapping (i.e. not fire or structural collapse), was in 1945. A Bomber crashed into the Empire State Building, severing the cables of two elevators. One of the cars on the 75th floor had a single woman on it, but she survived the falling lift due to the 1000 feet of coiled cable that formed below, creating a beautiful metal cushion.