A woman living alone on a high floor in Taichung City, Taiwan, became accidentally locked in her kitchen while retrieving something, and was trapped there for 43 hours. At a moment of inspiration, she used ketchup to write her building floor and block number with "SOS 119" on a piece of paper, and threw it out the window. Other residents discovered the note and called the authorities, who broke down the door and ended the ordeal.
According to Taichung City Police Department's Sixth Precinct, officers from the Shizheng Police Station received a report at around 7 a.m. on the 17th, stating that someone in a residential building in Xitun District was suspected to be trapped. Officers were immediately dispatched to the scene.
Upon investigation, police learned that Ms. Ke, a 27-year-old woman living alone, had gone to the kitchen to get something when a sudden gust of wind caused the door to lock behind her, trapping her inside for 43 hours. Since she didn’t have her phone with her, she had no way to call for help.
Ms. Ke stated that there was enough food in the kitchen refrigerator to sustain her, so she was not in immediate physical danger. During her ordeal, she came up with the idea to use ketchup from the fridge to write her building’s floor and block number, along with "SOS 119," on a food delivery bag, and threw it out the window towards other residents’ balconies to seek help.
The help notes scattered around, and fortunately, some other residents noticed them and immediately reported to the police. Firefighters and police arrived, broke down the door, and confirmed the trapped woman’s safety, bringing the frightening episode to an end.
The police reminded people living alone to pay attention to home safety to prevent similar incidents from occurring, and suggested keeping emergency rescue devices in the home to facilitate timely help in case of emergencies.