Elvita Adams was an ordinary 29-year old woman who came face to face with her death after she found herself falling from the Empire State Building in Manhattan, New York in 1979. This decision was after the then mother of a 10-year-old son lost her job, was on the verge of losing her home, was receiving a $100 check, and ran into depression. The black woman became the first ever to survive a fall from the 2,248,355 sq ft famous building.
All There Is To Know About How Elvita Adams Survived The Fall
It was on December 2, 1979, that Elvita Adams threw herself from the Empire States Building as a way to commit suicide as a result of how difficult life presented itself to her.
Unlike the many who had jumped off the building, Adams who had jumped from the 86th floor of the building had nature on her side when a strong wind blew her body back and she ended up on a two and a half foot ledge of the 85th floor of the 102-storey building.
Her groan led a Frank Clark, a police guard to her and was rescued. However, the suicide attempt did not come without physical damages of a broken hip. The Empire State Building falling survivor was later put under psychiatric watch after her treatment at the Bellvue Hospital.
5 Interesting Facts You Should Know About Elvita Adams
1. Many People Had Jumped Off The Empire State Building Before Elvita Adams
The first person to have jumped off the Empire State Building was a man in 1931 ever before the completion of the building. The cause of the fall was as a result of his losing his job thereby standing on the 58th floor and jumping down to end his life.
In later years in 1947, Evelyn McHale also found herself on the building and jumping off to end her life. What was peculiar about her jumping was the fact that she wore pearls and gloves and fell off the building on a limousine. Her death was christened the most beautiful suicide. Her story made many magazine pages and led to a student reaching his fame for snapping her while jumping. The picture made it to Time Magazine as well as featuring in Andy Warhol’d art among others.
Recounting the many falls from the Empire State Building, a rough number of about 30 people took the route with many of them losing their lives.
2. Adams Probably Didn’t Want To Commit Suicide
According to another narration of the suicide attempt by Elvina Adams, she left her apartment in the Bronx, New York to look at the city lights. She recounted how she wanted to touch them but ended up on the fence and down to the 85th floor.
In another story, Joseph Bay, a police officer said her jumping off the popular once upon a time tallest building was a suicide attempt since she climbed the fence.
3. Four Guards Usually Guard The Floor Above The Floor She Fell On
A lot consider what happened to Adams as more than just a coincidence but a possible miracle that not only did she find the wind that kept her alive blow her, but also fell on the floor that was just above where 4 police guards were always keeping watch. This led to one of the guards giving her a swift response that contributed to saving her life.
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4. She Was Living On A $100 Monthly Welfare Allocation
This could be one of the reasons for the suicide attempt by Adams. After losing her job, there was an allocation of $100 to her.
5. Where Is Elvita Adams Now?
Following the incident that almost claimed her life, Elvina’s lived her life in privacy thereby making it difficult for the media to keep track of her. Nonetheless, in 2011, there was a one-woman play by Ashley Lloyd Smith titled I’ve Been Elvita Adams that was produced. This led to the assumption that Adams could have adopted standup comedy as a profession.
Also, a Twitter account bearing her name @ElvitaAdams has in its profile a caption that reads “I’m the woman who beat the Empire State Building. I jumped but I didn’t die. So I quit the end of the line business for the stand-up comedy”. What remains unknown is whether the page has any true affiliation to her.
If she is still alive, then Elvita Adams should be about the age of 74 years old.
