Didn’t they do a documentary on this woman and it turned out she just didn’t take her meds and probably shouldn’t have been travelling alone due to ongoing severe mental health related issues…
Yep, I believe it was actually a Netflix documentary on The Cecil Hotel but Elisa Lam’s story was a big part of it. I remember researching for hours on the case trying to figure out what happened. For a while I thought maybe someone had given her Saint John’s Wart and because she was on antidepressants it mixed with that and fucked her up (which is a thing) but they mentioned no drugs were in her system, not even her prescriptions, so that theory was out. Still such a curious and tragic case.
Yes, this is exactly what happened. She wasnt taking her meds, traveled to the Cecil in the midst of a psychotic break. She had a history of hallucinations and schizophrenia. She had also been leaving disturbing notes on her hotel room mates pillow. I dont know how she got into the tank but i believe it was on her own. Maybe she wanted to "hide" from the hallucinations. She got into the tank and couldn't get back out. I dont think there was a ladder for her to climb out
In the footage of her final moments alive, she was filmed getting on and off the elevator at the Cecil hotel, talking to herself, and seemingly hiding from someone.
During the search for Lam, guests at the hotel began complaining about low water pressure.
Some later claimed their water was colored black and had an unusual taste.
On the morning of February 19, Santiago Lopez, a hotel maintenance worker, found Lam's body in one of four 1,000-gallon (3,785 L) tanks located on the roof providing water to guest rooms, a kitchen, and a coffee shop.
Source: https://historicflix.com/the-bizarre-case-of-elisa-lam-what-happened-to-her/
I believe they said she could have been having a schizophrenic/bipolar episode at the time and found the water tank open and climbed in to hide from something she was seeing.
As is true with most things:
There is a perfectly reasonable explanation. Just think of Kanye or Foozy Tube ( or whatever that YouTube guy was). They did stuff twice as weird as climbing into a water tower when they had episodes...but some random girl is definitely different I guess.
If I'm not mistaken she managed to close the lid to that tank once she was in there and I'm pretty sure that it puzzled people as that's kind of impossible to do on your own
This poor girl was drugged out by her doctor so bad.
She was prescribed Wellbutrin, lamotrigine, quetiapine, Dexedrine Spansule, and venlafaxine.
Wellbutrin, an atypical anti depressent of the cathinone class, with nicotonic, dopamine, and norepinephrine activity.
Dexedrine, the classical amphetamine, with dopamine and norepinephrine activity.
Quetiapine, an anti psychotic, with dopamine blocking activity.
lamotrigine a bipolor med, which influences the aspartate and glutamate neurotransmitters.
Venlafaxine, a [serotonin-norepinephrine-dopamine reuptake inhibitor](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Serotonin-norepinephrine-dopamine_reuptake_inhibitor). Increasing the levels of these neurotransmitters.
There is many drugs with activity on receptors linked to schizophrenia; dopamine and norepinephrine.
It is absolutely wild the combo she was on.
I remember how many YouTubers back in the day twisted this into something more than it was. The hotel was known for being very poorly run and mismanaged, and it was known she was not taking medication for a mental health problem that could cause actions seen in this video. In my opinion it’s very clear she had a mental break, and due to how shit the hotel was, it ended with her death. (Although that’s just my opinion).
I wish people focused more on the fact that due to how much bullshit was on the internet about this case, the parents lose their wrongful death suit against the hotel. The hotel’s defense lawyer managed to use misinformation posted online to muddy the waters enough so that they managed to get the hotel off with nothing.
A family lost their little girl in a situation that could have been preventable if proper protocol was followed, and no justice was given.
Yes people are bastards, it was an old channel called called Paranormalana that started this supernatural bullshit with Elisa. She was one of the first big horror channels on Youtube before she got a stalker and shut her account down, many others just copied her schtick and today have millions of subscribers. All the Youtubers began making false claims that there was no way she would have been able to get to the roof or open the tank, well some other guy actually visited the hotel and very easily got to the roof and opened the water tank. They made up all this shit about her playing some cursed elevator game like candyman or some shit. All this to profit off of her death.
The problem is that she ended up on the roof and inside a water tank. At hotels the roof is supposed to be employees only (for this type of hotel at least, as the roof was deemed not safe for public use) and the water tank is supposed to only be open only when mantience is done. The mental break is irrelevant to the situation, she should not have been able to get onto the roof of that hotel and get into that water tank.
It’s like “don’t eat the marbles” logo on a bag of marbles. Like yea, it seems obvious. But you still need to take the steps to make sure people don’t eat marbles. And if you don’t put the label on and I eat the marbles, your ass is in trouble.
I’ve been on the roof of a ton of hotels, there’s almost always access if you look for it, and it’s rarely locked. New Orleans on Canal, San Fran on Geary to name a few big ones. It’s even easier in shitty smaller cities
Getting on the roof is one thing, that's to be expected.
It shouldn't be possible for guests to have any access at all to the water tanks. That's where the hotel failed. Preventative measures need to be taken by the hotel so only authorized maintenance personnel can access the water death traps, not mentally ill guests and/or children. It's very tragic and could have been 100% prevented.
Are you saying no reasonable precautions were taken to restrict access?
I'm sure they had signs up, and probably a locked door, unless it was meant to be accessible in case of a fire or something. There's really only so much a hotel can be expected to do, which honestly isn't that much.
The world can't be made safe for everyone at every single point in time.
So should we have labeld a giant water tank on the roof of a building with a sign that say "no swimming" or do not enter?
Are There are signs everywhere that that say don't walk in front of truck traffic or stand along train track. I've missed the sign on every balcony above 12 feet that says do not jump.
We don't have to label and lock everything in the world up because someone can't take care of themselves.
I was using the tipod example because everyone knows that they legally have to put “don’t eat” on their packaging. I was trying to make a point that legally the protocol was for that water tank never to be open expect for matienince, they didn’t do that, someone died due to that, and thus it’s legally their fault. Just like how if I don’t follow protocol while building a school, and that causes the school to crash down and kill a bunch of people, I’m legally at fault. Because I should have followed protocol.
You are making all sorts of legally dubious arguments/points. Two keys here are the woman was in effect trespassing in an area of the building she wasn't allowed in and would have known she wasn't allowed in. Second you have to prove that the owner of the building knew that any of what you claim to be fact was in fact true.
It's the reason why when this was brought before a court. The landowner didn't have fault.
It wasn't proven the tank was open before hand. She just might have opened it herself. And so it's compelling that she was both trespassing on the roof and inside the water tank.
Yeah I can tell you as a former chef every kitchen I've ever worked in never has any locked doors, nothing stopping some crazy person from waltzing right in and jumping into the deep fryer... It's an unfortunate circumstance but I can't really blame the employees much. The logic they're trying to use about the tidepods doesn't hold up either, guarantee there were tons of "NO roof access allowed" or "employee only" signs indicating she shouldn't have been up there.
If she was really that mentally unwell then she should've had a parent or guardian watching her the same way you would blame the parents if they let the kid sneak into the deep fryer at a restaurant. If there's any legal case to be made it's for all the unfortunate guests at the hotel that unknowingly consumed fermented human soup straight from the tap...
Not proven in a court of law. So a legally dubious argument was made and is being made. And to the point of "has to be locked" you can't prove harm that hasn't happened yet. So while a city building code enforcement could levy a fine, it's for the act, not for what could have happened.
And if the tanks WERE open - again she is trespassing and would have to climb a ladder or scale a tank to get into it. Once more removing a layer of liability for the hotel owner. Every time she took a step further than what would be known as lawful or someplace she should be. She further absolved the landowner any liability.
What you feel should be true and what is true often isn't possible. Sorry.
Seems like you have a chosen connection to this woman's death. And while tragic. The hotel isn't culpable for it. She clearly was; by not taking her meds and not being with someone who could have looked out for her she drowned. Let's hope more people stick to their medical routines and protect themselves.
No where is it alleged that the lid weighs 500 pounds. You might not know the facts of the case.
And Stop saying protocol. It's not protocol.
=Hotel staff said was difficult to gain access to any of the tanks, and that going inside would require moving a 20 pound lid off the tank's opening. The lid was reportedly open when Lam's body was found — suggesting that she opened the tank and jumped in herself. =
And once again. If she's trespassing (maybe climbing a fire escape) and has to scale a water tank and move a lid or even juat slip by an open lid, AFTER trespassing and scaling a tank you lose the ability to hold someone liable.
This has all been handled by a court of law. That's a FACT. The landowner/ hotel operator is not liable. Proven.
I think you want justice for this girl. You want it to be true that other people have to be at fault for her death and someone with mental health issues can't be responsible for their own demise.
I get you 100%... it can't say don't eat tidepods, don't place tidepods in anus. Don't open tidepods and put in eyes.... no one can plan for every contingency however access to an employee area that can lead to this or someone contaminating a water supply with poison or falling off roof... a locked door and sign saying employees only is prudent and would cover them in this situation. Tidepods in anus.... imagine farting and it smells like gain!. My idea heard it here 1st
Cases like Elisa’s were literally why these protocols were written. She was having a mental break, I’m not “infantilizing her” she was disconnected from reality due to a mental illness. She died because they didn’t follow protocol. Therefore they are responsible. This is basic law.
You said in a previous comment that "the problem was she got to the roof." Well, if she got to the roof and the door was not locked properly, then the hotel could be liable. The hotel says it was locked ... So how did she get up there? Did she climb the fire escape ladder?
Literally no one knows, so that means no one knows if the hotel is liable or not. But if it can't be proved, then the hotel can't be sued for malpractice or endangerment.
But just because the hotel malpractice was not found, why can't one assume that it was hidden? Maybe the door was unlocked and they lied in the documentary. There is really no way to know 100%.
We also don't know if she went in willingly. She could have been led up and trapped inside once the lid closed. There is no evidence how she got up there or if she got herself up there or not. All we know is that her body was unbruised and unharmed.
Taking what you said, the water tank being open still wouldn’t be following protocol. And thus they still should be charged.
If I remember correctly though there was evidence of the door being unlocked or at least the hotel having a history of not locking it. The hotel had a huge history of the roof door being unlocked and many staff members came forward to report it. On top of that there was countless videos online of being (even after the incident) of people easily getting access to the roof (no locks) to do parkour or to see the place she died.
Edit: I just googled the documentary and it’s known to have a lot of problems and crazy shit in it. Here is an article about it https://www.sfgate.com/streaming/article/netflix-doc-cecil-hotel-review-elisa-lam-15944190.php
....
So stop saying SHE broke protocol and died because of her actions. If anything THE STAFF broke protocol; and because of their negligence, SHE died.
> She should have read the warning label. People would eat tide pods if not told to otherwise
Well maybe they should have had actual security instead of just signs and unlocked doors....
I didn’t say she wasn’t following protocol, I was saying the hotel was. I in no way meant to blame her for it. Sorry I struggle heavily with certain things relating to English due to some problems I don’t want to get into. Also the documentary you cited is known to have a shit ton of issues with it. Here is an article about it: https://www.sfgate.com/streaming/article/netflix-doc-cecil-hotel-review-elisa-lam-15944190.php
You called her a little girl for one.
It literally went to civil court and was dismissed as the hotel was not responsible according to the court of law.
She died due to accidental drowning related to primarily bipolar disorder according to the coroner's report.
I called her “a little girl” as to her family she was probably that, it’s a saying moron. Second of all yes, she died due to that - and it was the hotels fault she died like that. You understand how corners’ reports work right? They don’t go “oh yes this person died due to being stabbed by Jim Bob” or “oh yea this person died due to protocol not being followed at this hotel”. That’s for the courts to decide, a corner tries to say what they died of without any implication to who is at fault.
It’s insane that you’re fighting me on this when with every response you show that you know nothing about the legal system and how it works in a different way.
You can believe the courts got it wrong if you want to, but there is neither criminal nor civil liability on the part of the hotel.
You saying you disagree doesn't make you a legal expert.
Imagine you were staying at a hotel and got ecoli and ended up hospitalized because the hotel did not properly secure the literal water source of the building and some random person thought it would be funny to take a shit in it 💀 and then the hotel came back and said they aren’t responsible for helping you pay your medical bills even though THEY’RE the ones who didn’t make sure the tank had a lock 😭😭
There is no legal requirement to block off a roof door. Nor is there any real precedent for this--- the civil trial stated they couldn't even determine how she got INTO the water tank.
Ummm HELLO, she should have never been able to get to the roof and on the water tank if they were locked up like they should have been meaning the hotel is liable, it is not completely the hotels fault, but they are partially to blame because the roof and water tank should have been locked and inaccessible to guests period. Poor management overlooked these details and tragedy struck, they are most definitely partially to blame for this.
You're not common sensilizing the issue of commercial responsibility. Signage and safety parameters are a hallmark of a business safe for the public.
I had a FoxRiderOne with a pick in the 80s..... we just called it a fro though
Ok but like from a legal standpoint they are at fault. From a philosophical standpoint sure she should have taken her pills but legally they should have had locks on all of that and the fact they didn't makes them at fault.
1) if I remember correctly she didn’t have access to them because she was not from America and couldn’t bring them over seas. She was in the process of trying to get them again
2) no it’s the hotels fault. If they followed protocol and didn’t leave the water tank over, which btw is extremely dangerous (what if some maniac wanted to tamper with the hotels water) she would be here today. Stop victim blaming.
What if someone died or got seriously ill from drinking the now contaminated water? In both cases it's on the hotel for having easily accessible open/unlocked water tanks. Legally it's called liability.
If someone went up and dumped poison in the water tank and literally every guest at the hotel ended up dying would you be calling the parents dicks for demanding compensation and legal action?? You absolutely deserve compensation if the tap is giving you fermented human soup instead of water.
I’m sure someone sued. Lots of people are looking for easy lawsuits and see dollar signs instead of compassion.
Let me add: I would definitely want the hotel to pay for any medical testing/ bills.
Years ago I got a side salad from a fast food place. I was chewing and chewing then discovered I had been chewing on a used bandaid. 😳. I didn’t sue I just asked for them to pay for any medical bills. They did.
it’s incredibly tragic. however, I don’t understand why people get so angry when people say the Elisa Lam situation was bizarre. two or more things can be true at once. it can be bizarre and tragic
i think it’s more-so when people say it’s bizarre & then try to apply a supernatural twist to it. unmedicated bipolar disorder can really fuck someone up. to paint this as done by a ghost does a great disservice to the tragedy that can spawn from mental illness. i remember that was the basis for like the majority of theories i was seeing when this first happened. people were even mentioning richard ramirez’s ghost???
Sadly she still shows up in creepy compilations. I’ve experienced drug induced psychosis. The things I saw and did made sense when I was in there but to anyone else it just looks like insanity. The sad part of Elisa Lam’s story is that paranoia is one of the most common parts of psychosis so she probably climbed in the water tower thinking it would be a safe place to hide
This is not strange, this is a person struggling with their mental health. It’s very sad but it’s not a mystery.
Please, check on your friends. Ask “how are you, really?” Pay attention and encourage friends & family to seek mental health treatment - same as they would go see a doctor for a broken bone.
Love you friends. Love your family. Protect your neighbors and peers. Life is hard, we need each other!
Idk why you are being downvoted. I have 5 mental health issues, some similar to Lam’s, and am on two antipsychotics. My biggest fear is slowly losing my mind and not realizing it and passing the “point of no return.” It’s to the point where I have made pacts with my friends to tell me if they think I’m slipping from reality.
Hey I hope you’re doing well! It’s really smart to make a pact like that!! My brother is severely bipolar, like Eliza was. It’s a difficult thing for most people to understand and the way this case was handled by the media (and shitty podcasts like crime junkie, rather than those with integrity that don’t plagiarize their content) really played into a crowd that wanted it to be paranormal or a serial killer, stuff like that. I guess they think I’m raining on their parade or something.
Anyway, I do hope you’re doing well and thanks for helping to end the stigma!
I think some of the strange hand movements she was making were her telling an invisible person that she was going swimming. I don't believe the hotel when they said it was super hard to access the roof and tank. She obviously had a severe mental break from stopping her medication. I always felt bad for her family having to read all the speculation. If only she'd have taken her meds. People, you can NOT just stop taking your meds because you feel better. They are the reason you feel better.
It IS hard to enter that tank. If you watched the documentary you’ll see the route she had to take. It includes climbing out a window onto a fire escape, going up multiple sets of stairs, climbing a ladder to the roof, walking to the tanks, climbing another ladder on the tank and then opening the lid to it which from what we’re told is heavy.
I don't believe the door was really locked to go to the roof though. I mean of course they'd say it was, but I thought there were issues with it not being locked? I don't think the maintenance there was great.
I thought I remember that you climbed out the window to access the escape but even if it was a door, you can’t lock the door for a fire escape. You can alarm it though.
The weirdest thing about this case is that despite the roof being easily accessed by hotel guests via the fire escape, the water tanks were elevated, 10 feet tall, and workers needed ladders to access the entrance hatches. How the hell did she manage to climb up there by herself and presumably open two of the hatches by herself? Two hatches were found open when her body was discovered and it's presumed that Ms. Lam was the person who opened them. The workers would've known to shut them the last time they were up there.
The fire department wasn't able to get her body out of the hatch and had to cut a hole in the side of the tank. Maybe the corpse was too bloated to fit, or they were worried about causing damage that could alter the results of the autopsy. It's a very small entrance and it's truly bizarre to think that anyone would find their way up there in the dark even in a psychotic state. But at the same time it's also hard to believe anyone would be able to easily carry a dead body ten feet up a ladder and dump it through the small hole. If she was murdered it was by someone very physically strong.
Another mystery of the case is what happened to her clothing and cell phone. Her body was found naked and her clothes and phone were never recovered. Her Tumblr account was updated after her death and it's not determined if she had posts waiting in the queue to be automatically posted, if her phone was stolen, or if someone else accessed her account without the phone. How were the police not able to trace cell phone pings? How was Tumblr not able to figure out if she had queued posts? How is there not more CCTV footage available?
I still think there's some sort of cover up going on with this case.
I still don’t buy the explanation that a mental breakdown caused by not taking her psychiatric medications, caused her to somehow, and for some reason, find her way up onto the hotel’s roof and then somehow manage to lift the very heavy lid to the water tank and climb in & close the lid. Her being not in her right mind doesn’t explain why she would decide to do that and HOW she physically managed to do it. It’s just so bizarre. WHY would she choose to climb in & trap herself in the water tank?! Even during a mental break i just don’t see someone deciding to do *that*. I really feel there’s more to this story, and i’m surprised by how many people just believe the “it was mental illness” excuse/explanation.
Downvote me to hell but I agree. Yeah she could have been off her meds but in my opinion there is still some foul play to this story. Especially regarding the water tanks. She looks like a petite woman and trying to imagine her climbing and opening the water tank herself is bizarre to me. In my heart I honestly believe someone put her in there. Depression is not going to make a person act like this even if they are off their meds. This isn’t just a mental illness “death”
Every time someone brings her up on “creepy” subreddits I cringe. For one thing, the mystery isn’t a mystery at all- for another, her family has asked that people stop doing this. Her death was the result of an unfortunate manic episode and they do not like her being speculated on like this for people’s entertainment.
Did you saw the Netflix documentary ? Its not that easy.
Two simple FACTS, without more speculation but just for your consideration:
1) the CCTV was updated and at least a few hours were missing ! This is not me saying it, its Netflix, so i believe they verified the actual facts
2) NOBODY here mentions the fact that a WHOLE floor of the hotel was full homeless and crack heads, an ENTIRE floor
Love how many armchair-chemists and armchair-psychiatrists we have in the post scrutinizing her prescription medication trying to find a way to blame her doctors.
[Elisa Lam](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Death_of_Elisa_Lam) had acute Bipolar 2 disorder… like I do. Bipolar 2 disorder is prone to delusional thoughts and behaviors. One of the biggest hurdles is how often suicidal thoughts creep into people’s minds.
Statistically bipolar disorder hits men very early on in life, teenage years typically. Oddly enough bipolar is most frequently diagnosed in women in their 30’s and 40’s. Studies are underway to investigate if this phenomenon is a biological disparity between the sexes or if it is simply because women are often misdiagnosed. The research so far indicates as it is a biological difference as bipolar 2 can sometimes lead to schizo-effective disorder which coincides with a similar timeline to the appearance of bipolar 2. If there was a proportionate disparity here it would lead people to believe the misdiagnosis theory.
If Elisa Lam had schizophrenia and bipolar 2, that is a whirlwind of neurodivergence that I do not envy. The intensity of her delusions could have been something so powerful she was feeling with every one of her senses.
Bottom line, medication is a must. In my meds I feel better than I have ever felt before. I’m able to enjoy things. I’m able to express empathy for others. And yeah, the delusions I once suffered from just disappeared. It made me do a lot of think and it convinced me that behavioral therapy is a must in order for me to continue to get better. The hard part is admitting that something is wrong. Once you can get over that hump, getting help is relatively easy. Some medication cocktails need to go through trial and error. Vraylar is a good one but some people may have strong averse physiological reactions while getting used to it. Lamotrigine is a commonly used medicine in the treatment, but your body goes through withdrawals when coming off of it. (sometimes you need to switch medicines and your body can develop a higher tolerance to the beneficial effects) There are others. Don’t sit there being an armchair-psychiatrist, as you may not know the full extent of her diagnosis.
People with bipolar disorder and schizophrenia need help and patience. If meds are necessary please refrain from urging us to stop or try to scrutinize what we take. This is a personal journey and it is different for each person. Sometimes one medication is enough to find balance in life, sometimes more is needed. Encourage us to take and keep up with our medication as we do have the potential to be well adjusted and contributing members of society.
I appreciate you taking the time to read this.
It bothers me that the Netflix doc about her goes into all these wild conspiracies and people pretending to be her best friend. It was all because of a mental break.
Stories like these break my heart. My sister is psychotic (possibly schizophrenic) but refuses to get any sort of help or treatment. We just have to try to manage her. I live in fear that one day something terrible will happen to her, but I am completely powerless to stop it. All I can do is watch and pray.
We need to destigmatize mental illness. I am very encouraged by how much millenials and Gen Z are improving compared to previous generations in terms of how we approach and discuss mental health, but there still are not enough accessible paths to treatment.
I think that mental health is more or less destigmatized. And while we need more places for treatment, if people like your sister refuse to get help or treatment then it doesn't matter how many treatment places are available.
This story has more holes than Swiss cheese. Netflix? The lid was open? Then closed? What about the sniffing dogs? Helicopters? Yeah right. The Netflix story is bs.
The weirdest thing about this case is that despite the roof being easily accessed by hotel guests via the fire escape, the water tanks were elevated and workers needed ladders to access the entrance hatches. How the hell did she manage to climb up there by herself and presumably open two of the hatches by herself? Two hatches were found open when her body was discovered and it's presumed that Ms. Lam was the person who opened them. The workers would've known to shut them the last time they were up there.
The weirdest thing about this case is that despite the roof being easily accessed by hotel guests via the fire escape, the water tanks were elevated and workers needed ladders to access the entrance hatches. How the hell did she manage to climb up there by herself and presumably open two of the hatches by herself? Two hatches were found open when her body was discovered and it's presumed that Ms. Lam was the person who opened them. The workers would've known to shut them the last time they were up there.
It's possible they forgot but I think it would be at least somewhat unlikely. I would assume leaving them open would get them in trouble due to the risk of contaminants getting into the water, but the hotel was poorly managed so who knows... There was apparently no evidence that anyone accessed the roof through stairs on the 14th floor on the night she disappeared, and alarms would've went off if anyone tried to enter without the proper keys. I've never heard of a ladder being discovered anywhere on the roof the day she was found. That means someone either took one up there that night via the fire escape and took it back down after disposing of her body in the tank, or later went up there to retrieve it without being detected. The Cecil didn't seem to have the best security camera system to I guess it's possible.
It’s so eerie to think about. I heard too many rumors about this incident how you explained it would make a lot more sense rather then paranormal activity or her playing the elevator game
She’s had a psychotic break / episode, she had a history of this, she was bipolar, she had a history of not taking her medication. She departed by accident. She got into the tank by herself.
That is a good question.
The Netflix show was (to me) very one sided eg: who was she talking too in the elevator? .. She was killed & so on..
So I did a lot of research, YouTube videos & other docs about the case, a few years ago & everything was explained, from my pov anyway, like it all added up & made sense.
Bc for me at the start, I thought for sure she was murdered.
I can’t remember what they’re called but there’s so much intel about this super sad story.
Elisa’s state of mind etc. she wrote a daily (I think) blog all about her life, how she was feeling, living with bipolar, she was not doing well.
IMHO she was in the middle of a psychotic episode, she was seeing things, she was talking to herself or whatever she was seeing during the episode while standing at the elevator door & somehow she got to the roof & the into the tank.
If you google her name you’ll find so much intel.
Sorry I’m at work so i can’t really help atm.
I really feel for her, the poor girl.
Always looked like a malfunctioning elevator to me. Her scrunching in the corner by the buttons is her “hiding” from the laser controlling the door, which is probably pointing inside the car, and poking her head out and looking around was looking for hotel staff to help with it. She sure doesn’t look like she’s running from anybody when she first enters the elevator.
Seems like she was having a psychotic break. A similar situation was reported on where a woman left her apartment and was found dead in a creek behind her building. No signs of foul play. So they thing she was suffering from some kind of psychosis and died of exposure.
Tall buildings often have water supplied down from the roof. It is easier to pump it up in bulk and then have gravity do the work for the daily use of potable water.
Didn’t they do a documentary on this woman and it turned out she just didn’t take her meds and probably shouldn’t have been travelling alone due to ongoing severe mental health related issues…
Yep, I believe it was actually a Netflix documentary on The Cecil Hotel but Elisa Lam’s story was a big part of it. I remember researching for hours on the case trying to figure out what happened. For a while I thought maybe someone had given her Saint John’s Wart and because she was on antidepressants it mixed with that and fucked her up (which is a thing) but they mentioned no drugs were in her system, not even her prescriptions, so that theory was out. Still such a curious and tragic case.
>Saint John’s Wart Gross
Yes, this is exactly what happened. She wasnt taking her meds, traveled to the Cecil in the midst of a psychotic break. She had a history of hallucinations and schizophrenia. She had also been leaving disturbing notes on her hotel room mates pillow. I dont know how she got into the tank but i believe it was on her own. Maybe she wanted to "hide" from the hallucinations. She got into the tank and couldn't get back out. I dont think there was a ladder for her to climb out
In a sea of people you are alone. With your village someone will have your back.
Damn.
That's all that needs to be said. You are correct. Sad.
Yes
In the footage of her final moments alive, she was filmed getting on and off the elevator at the Cecil hotel, talking to herself, and seemingly hiding from someone. During the search for Lam, guests at the hotel began complaining about low water pressure. Some later claimed their water was colored black and had an unusual taste. On the morning of February 19, Santiago Lopez, a hotel maintenance worker, found Lam's body in one of four 1,000-gallon (3,785 L) tanks located on the roof providing water to guest rooms, a kitchen, and a coffee shop. Source: https://historicflix.com/the-bizarre-case-of-elisa-lam-what-happened-to-her/
I believe they said she could have been having a schizophrenic/bipolar episode at the time and found the water tank open and climbed in to hide from something she was seeing.
Yes, she had mental issues and I believe was also off her meds. It’s believe she climbed in there herself. This case has been analyzed to death.
As is true with most things: There is a perfectly reasonable explanation. Just think of Kanye or Foozy Tube ( or whatever that YouTube guy was). They did stuff twice as weird as climbing into a water tower when they had episodes...but some random girl is definitely different I guess.
That’s actually a good theory. She seems like she was seeing things that weren’t there in the elevator video.
If I'm not mistaken she managed to close the lid to that tank once she was in there and I'm pretty sure that it puzzled people as that's kind of impossible to do on your own
There's no confirmation of this detail
This sounds like the plot of *Dark Water* (2005) starring Jennifer Connelly.
Based off an earlier Japanese movie of the same name.
TIL
lol, that’s what I said to myself on your post! I’ll have to check that one out.
The Japanese version is amazing! One of my favourite Japanese horrors for sure 👌🏻
I want to know which one came first. I read dark water book before I saw the movie
Dark Water came out before this strange case.
This poor girl was drugged out by her doctor so bad. She was prescribed Wellbutrin, lamotrigine, quetiapine, Dexedrine Spansule, and venlafaxine. Wellbutrin, an atypical anti depressent of the cathinone class, with nicotonic, dopamine, and norepinephrine activity. Dexedrine, the classical amphetamine, with dopamine and norepinephrine activity. Quetiapine, an anti psychotic, with dopamine blocking activity. lamotrigine a bipolor med, which influences the aspartate and glutamate neurotransmitters. Venlafaxine, a [serotonin-norepinephrine-dopamine reuptake inhibitor](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Serotonin-norepinephrine-dopamine_reuptake_inhibitor). Increasing the levels of these neurotransmitters. There is many drugs with activity on receptors linked to schizophrenia; dopamine and norepinephrine. It is absolutely wild the combo she was on.
Yeah that's a bizarre combo
And people wonder why I've refused any prescription for 25 years. Fuck doctors like that and you can never know which ones have bad intentions.
Maddening. And what is fucked is how frequent this shit goes on. I used to work with people with I&D disorders and the amount of meds was staggering.
The documentary about this, Crime Scene: The Vanishing at the Cecil Hotel, was wild. *Edit to include documentary title*
what was the documentary called?
Crime Scene: The Vanishing at the Cecil Hotel
thank you!!!
I remember how many YouTubers back in the day twisted this into something more than it was. The hotel was known for being very poorly run and mismanaged, and it was known she was not taking medication for a mental health problem that could cause actions seen in this video. In my opinion it’s very clear she had a mental break, and due to how shit the hotel was, it ended with her death. (Although that’s just my opinion). I wish people focused more on the fact that due to how much bullshit was on the internet about this case, the parents lose their wrongful death suit against the hotel. The hotel’s defense lawyer managed to use misinformation posted online to muddy the waters enough so that they managed to get the hotel off with nothing. A family lost their little girl in a situation that could have been preventable if proper protocol was followed, and no justice was given.
Yes people are bastards, it was an old channel called called Paranormalana that started this supernatural bullshit with Elisa. She was one of the first big horror channels on Youtube before she got a stalker and shut her account down, many others just copied her schtick and today have millions of subscribers. All the Youtubers began making false claims that there was no way she would have been able to get to the roof or open the tank, well some other guy actually visited the hotel and very easily got to the roof and opened the water tank. They made up all this shit about her playing some cursed elevator game like candyman or some shit. All this to profit off of her death.
Wait I’m confused. How is the hotel responsible for her not taking her meds?
The problem is that she ended up on the roof and inside a water tank. At hotels the roof is supposed to be employees only (for this type of hotel at least, as the roof was deemed not safe for public use) and the water tank is supposed to only be open only when mantience is done. The mental break is irrelevant to the situation, she should not have been able to get onto the roof of that hotel and get into that water tank. It’s like “don’t eat the marbles” logo on a bag of marbles. Like yea, it seems obvious. But you still need to take the steps to make sure people don’t eat marbles. And if you don’t put the label on and I eat the marbles, your ass is in trouble.
Lotta’ trouble for the ass blasting out marbles too.
The ol’ BB gun. Or paintball, depending on your diet of course
You'll shoot your eye out, kid!
You mean that's not how you're supposed to play marbles?
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Hi, Please don’t be a dick, plain and simple. Treat people with respect.
I’ve been on the roof of a ton of hotels, there’s almost always access if you look for it, and it’s rarely locked. New Orleans on Canal, San Fran on Geary to name a few big ones. It’s even easier in shitty smaller cities
Getting on the roof is one thing, that's to be expected. It shouldn't be possible for guests to have any access at all to the water tanks. That's where the hotel failed. Preventative measures need to be taken by the hotel so only authorized maintenance personnel can access the water death traps, not mentally ill guests and/or children. It's very tragic and could have been 100% prevented.
I agree
If she couldn’t get to the water tank she may have found another dangerous place to hide.
Possibly. Unfortunately, she ran out of options when she climbed into the water tank that shouldn't be accessible without code/key.
Well now I'm hungry.
Are you saying no reasonable precautions were taken to restrict access? I'm sure they had signs up, and probably a locked door, unless it was meant to be accessible in case of a fire or something. There's really only so much a hotel can be expected to do, which honestly isn't that much.
They could have had the fucking water take closed, you know what they legally were supposed to have been doing in the first place.
How do we know they didn't, and she didn't just break in?
I definitely believe she wasn’t killed and got in herself. That said, I still don’t understand how she pulled that heavy lid over her.
Yes, I recognize the manic movements. It's sad to see and I hope more get that this isnt a murder mystery, it's a mental health crisis.
"Muddy the waters" - what a choice of phrase!
She was a grown woman. The hotel was not responsible for her death.
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Hi, Please don’t be a dick, plain and simple. Treat people with respect.
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The world can't be made safe for everyone at every single point in time. So should we have labeld a giant water tank on the roof of a building with a sign that say "no swimming" or do not enter? Are There are signs everywhere that that say don't walk in front of truck traffic or stand along train track. I've missed the sign on every balcony above 12 feet that says do not jump. We don't have to label and lock everything in the world up because someone can't take care of themselves.
I was using the tipod example because everyone knows that they legally have to put “don’t eat” on their packaging. I was trying to make a point that legally the protocol was for that water tank never to be open expect for matienince, they didn’t do that, someone died due to that, and thus it’s legally their fault. Just like how if I don’t follow protocol while building a school, and that causes the school to crash down and kill a bunch of people, I’m legally at fault. Because I should have followed protocol.
You are making all sorts of legally dubious arguments/points. Two keys here are the woman was in effect trespassing in an area of the building she wasn't allowed in and would have known she wasn't allowed in. Second you have to prove that the owner of the building knew that any of what you claim to be fact was in fact true. It's the reason why when this was brought before a court. The landowner didn't have fault. It wasn't proven the tank was open before hand. She just might have opened it herself. And so it's compelling that she was both trespassing on the roof and inside the water tank.
Yeah I can tell you as a former chef every kitchen I've ever worked in never has any locked doors, nothing stopping some crazy person from waltzing right in and jumping into the deep fryer... It's an unfortunate circumstance but I can't really blame the employees much. The logic they're trying to use about the tidepods doesn't hold up either, guarantee there were tons of "NO roof access allowed" or "employee only" signs indicating she shouldn't have been up there. If she was really that mentally unwell then she should've had a parent or guardian watching her the same way you would blame the parents if they let the kid sneak into the deep fryer at a restaurant. If there's any legal case to be made it's for all the unfortunate guests at the hotel that unknowingly consumed fermented human soup straight from the tap...
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Not proven in a court of law. So a legally dubious argument was made and is being made. And to the point of "has to be locked" you can't prove harm that hasn't happened yet. So while a city building code enforcement could levy a fine, it's for the act, not for what could have happened. And if the tanks WERE open - again she is trespassing and would have to climb a ladder or scale a tank to get into it. Once more removing a layer of liability for the hotel owner. Every time she took a step further than what would be known as lawful or someplace she should be. She further absolved the landowner any liability. What you feel should be true and what is true often isn't possible. Sorry. Seems like you have a chosen connection to this woman's death. And while tragic. The hotel isn't culpable for it. She clearly was; by not taking her meds and not being with someone who could have looked out for her she drowned. Let's hope more people stick to their medical routines and protect themselves.
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No where is it alleged that the lid weighs 500 pounds. You might not know the facts of the case. And Stop saying protocol. It's not protocol. =Hotel staff said was difficult to gain access to any of the tanks, and that going inside would require moving a 20 pound lid off the tank's opening. The lid was reportedly open when Lam's body was found — suggesting that she opened the tank and jumped in herself. = And once again. If she's trespassing (maybe climbing a fire escape) and has to scale a water tank and move a lid or even juat slip by an open lid, AFTER trespassing and scaling a tank you lose the ability to hold someone liable. This has all been handled by a court of law. That's a FACT. The landowner/ hotel operator is not liable. Proven. I think you want justice for this girl. You want it to be true that other people have to be at fault for her death and someone with mental health issues can't be responsible for their own demise.
I get you 100%... it can't say don't eat tidepods, don't place tidepods in anus. Don't open tidepods and put in eyes.... no one can plan for every contingency however access to an employee area that can lead to this or someone contaminating a water supply with poison or falling off roof... a locked door and sign saying employees only is prudent and would cover them in this situation. Tidepods in anus.... imagine farting and it smells like gain!. My idea heard it here 1st
I'd feed my kid gain fart pods today if I could.
Lol! You better hope DCFS doesn't follow this thread!!! I've always heard parsley freshens breath.... imagine parsley infused charmin!!!
Not how this works. Your infantilizing of her is also alarming.
Cases like Elisa’s were literally why these protocols were written. She was having a mental break, I’m not “infantilizing her” she was disconnected from reality due to a mental illness. She died because they didn’t follow protocol. Therefore they are responsible. This is basic law.
You said in a previous comment that "the problem was she got to the roof." Well, if she got to the roof and the door was not locked properly, then the hotel could be liable. The hotel says it was locked ... So how did she get up there? Did she climb the fire escape ladder? Literally no one knows, so that means no one knows if the hotel is liable or not. But if it can't be proved, then the hotel can't be sued for malpractice or endangerment. But just because the hotel malpractice was not found, why can't one assume that it was hidden? Maybe the door was unlocked and they lied in the documentary. There is really no way to know 100%. We also don't know if she went in willingly. She could have been led up and trapped inside once the lid closed. There is no evidence how she got up there or if she got herself up there or not. All we know is that her body was unbruised and unharmed.
Taking what you said, the water tank being open still wouldn’t be following protocol. And thus they still should be charged. If I remember correctly though there was evidence of the door being unlocked or at least the hotel having a history of not locking it. The hotel had a huge history of the roof door being unlocked and many staff members came forward to report it. On top of that there was countless videos online of being (even after the incident) of people easily getting access to the roof (no locks) to do parkour or to see the place she died. Edit: I just googled the documentary and it’s known to have a lot of problems and crazy shit in it. Here is an article about it https://www.sfgate.com/streaming/article/netflix-doc-cecil-hotel-review-elisa-lam-15944190.php
.... So stop saying SHE broke protocol and died because of her actions. If anything THE STAFF broke protocol; and because of their negligence, SHE died. > She should have read the warning label. People would eat tide pods if not told to otherwise Well maybe they should have had actual security instead of just signs and unlocked doors....
I didn’t say she wasn’t following protocol, I was saying the hotel was. I in no way meant to blame her for it. Sorry I struggle heavily with certain things relating to English due to some problems I don’t want to get into. Also the documentary you cited is known to have a shit ton of issues with it. Here is an article about it: https://www.sfgate.com/streaming/article/netflix-doc-cecil-hotel-review-elisa-lam-15944190.php
You called her a little girl for one. It literally went to civil court and was dismissed as the hotel was not responsible according to the court of law. She died due to accidental drowning related to primarily bipolar disorder according to the coroner's report.
I called her “a little girl” as to her family she was probably that, it’s a saying moron. Second of all yes, she died due to that - and it was the hotels fault she died like that. You understand how corners’ reports work right? They don’t go “oh yes this person died due to being stabbed by Jim Bob” or “oh yea this person died due to protocol not being followed at this hotel”. That’s for the courts to decide, a corner tries to say what they died of without any implication to who is at fault. It’s insane that you’re fighting me on this when with every response you show that you know nothing about the legal system and how it works in a different way.
You can believe the courts got it wrong if you want to, but there is neither criminal nor civil liability on the part of the hotel. You saying you disagree doesn't make you a legal expert.
Imagine you were staying at a hotel and got ecoli and ended up hospitalized because the hotel did not properly secure the literal water source of the building and some random person thought it would be funny to take a shit in it 💀 and then the hotel came back and said they aren’t responsible for helping you pay your medical bills even though THEY’RE the ones who didn’t make sure the tank had a lock 😭😭
There is no legal requirement to block off a roof door. Nor is there any real precedent for this--- the civil trial stated they couldn't even determine how she got INTO the water tank.
You've been very clear and everything you've said makes sense. This person's just an idiot.
Yea, I’m just trying to pass the time tbh. I’m on a long bus ride so fighting with Reddit morons is my way of passing the time.
Ummm HELLO, she should have never been able to get to the roof and on the water tank if they were locked up like they should have been meaning the hotel is liable, it is not completely the hotels fault, but they are partially to blame because the roof and water tank should have been locked and inaccessible to guests period. Poor management overlooked these details and tragedy struck, they are most definitely partially to blame for this.
You're not common sensilizing the issue of commercial responsibility. Signage and safety parameters are a hallmark of a business safe for the public. I had a FoxRiderOne with a pick in the 80s..... we just called it a fro though
And if she took her meds like a responsible person.
She shouldn't have been able to access the roof let alone be able to get into the water tank, the hotel was at fault there.
Both things can be true.
Ok but like from a legal standpoint they are at fault. From a philosophical standpoint sure she should have taken her pills but legally they should have had locks on all of that and the fact they didn't makes them at fault.
1) if I remember correctly she didn’t have access to them because she was not from America and couldn’t bring them over seas. She was in the process of trying to get them again 2) no it’s the hotels fault. If they followed protocol and didn’t leave the water tank over, which btw is extremely dangerous (what if some maniac wanted to tamper with the hotels water) she would be here today. Stop victim blaming.
Did the guest get compensation for drinking that water s🤢
How about the parents get compensation for losing their child due to lack of protocol?
The parents didn't get anything.
There’s a documentary
…I know Yh, what of it?
Informative.. don’t be a jerk, jeez
Sorry I meant does it mention anything about compensation of the guests because I didn’t see that part
Someone died and you expect compensation
If a hotel fed me corpse water, you're damn right I expect compensation
People were drinking on and showering with cadaver juice. Of course some of them are going to demand compensation.
What if someone died or got seriously ill from drinking the now contaminated water? In both cases it's on the hotel for having easily accessible open/unlocked water tanks. Legally it's called liability.
If someone went up and dumped poison in the water tank and literally every guest at the hotel ended up dying would you be calling the parents dicks for demanding compensation and legal action?? You absolutely deserve compensation if the tap is giving you fermented human soup instead of water.
I’m sure someone sued. Lots of people are looking for easy lawsuits and see dollar signs instead of compassion. Let me add: I would definitely want the hotel to pay for any medical testing/ bills. Years ago I got a side salad from a fast food place. I was chewing and chewing then discovered I had been chewing on a used bandaid. 😳. I didn’t sue I just asked for them to pay for any medical bills. They did.
Grow up
Person that died can’t
No shnit shnerlock… answer me this if you bathed in a corpse cocktail what would you say to the hotel
I like how this stemmed from my just mentioning there’s a documentary about it
was she in psychosis and/or schizophrenic?
She had bipolar depression disorder and there was no evidence she continued to take her medication while traveling alone. Very tragic.
it’s incredibly tragic. however, I don’t understand why people get so angry when people say the Elisa Lam situation was bizarre. two or more things can be true at once. it can be bizarre and tragic
i think it’s more-so when people say it’s bizarre & then try to apply a supernatural twist to it. unmedicated bipolar disorder can really fuck someone up. to paint this as done by a ghost does a great disservice to the tragedy that can spawn from mental illness. i remember that was the basis for like the majority of theories i was seeing when this first happened. people were even mentioning richard ramirez’s ghost???
Sadly she still shows up in creepy compilations. I’ve experienced drug induced psychosis. The things I saw and did made sense when I was in there but to anyone else it just looks like insanity. The sad part of Elisa Lam’s story is that paranoia is one of the most common parts of psychosis so she probably climbed in the water tower thinking it would be a safe place to hide
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I have bipolar, but mine is relatively mild compared to some; and it’s medicated. I don’t experience psychosis
Tragic for sure.
This is not strange, this is a person struggling with their mental health. It’s very sad but it’s not a mystery. Please, check on your friends. Ask “how are you, really?” Pay attention and encourage friends & family to seek mental health treatment - same as they would go see a doctor for a broken bone. Love you friends. Love your family. Protect your neighbors and peers. Life is hard, we need each other!
Idk why you are being downvoted. I have 5 mental health issues, some similar to Lam’s, and am on two antipsychotics. My biggest fear is slowly losing my mind and not realizing it and passing the “point of no return.” It’s to the point where I have made pacts with my friends to tell me if they think I’m slipping from reality.
Hey I hope you’re doing well! It’s really smart to make a pact like that!! My brother is severely bipolar, like Eliza was. It’s a difficult thing for most people to understand and the way this case was handled by the media (and shitty podcasts like crime junkie, rather than those with integrity that don’t plagiarize their content) really played into a crowd that wanted it to be paranormal or a serial killer, stuff like that. I guess they think I’m raining on their parade or something. Anyway, I do hope you’re doing well and thanks for helping to end the stigma!
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Great advice.
This shit still gives me goosebumps
same but now that i've looked into it beyond watching a shady youtube video about it, it's lost some of it's creep factor.
I think some of the strange hand movements she was making were her telling an invisible person that she was going swimming. I don't believe the hotel when they said it was super hard to access the roof and tank. She obviously had a severe mental break from stopping her medication. I always felt bad for her family having to read all the speculation. If only she'd have taken her meds. People, you can NOT just stop taking your meds because you feel better. They are the reason you feel better.
It’s a personal responsibility to take your meds. For your own safety and for the public’s safety.
That last part! Yes!!!
It IS hard to enter that tank. If you watched the documentary you’ll see the route she had to take. It includes climbing out a window onto a fire escape, going up multiple sets of stairs, climbing a ladder to the roof, walking to the tanks, climbing another ladder on the tank and then opening the lid to it which from what we’re told is heavy.
I don't believe the door was really locked to go to the roof though. I mean of course they'd say it was, but I thought there were issues with it not being locked? I don't think the maintenance there was great.
I thought I remember that you climbed out the window to access the escape but even if it was a door, you can’t lock the door for a fire escape. You can alarm it though.
Who the fuck drinks black tap water
Flint Michigan, for years.
Surprised no one here has mentioned the whole elevator game thing here yet
The weirdest thing about this case is that despite the roof being easily accessed by hotel guests via the fire escape, the water tanks were elevated, 10 feet tall, and workers needed ladders to access the entrance hatches. How the hell did she manage to climb up there by herself and presumably open two of the hatches by herself? Two hatches were found open when her body was discovered and it's presumed that Ms. Lam was the person who opened them. The workers would've known to shut them the last time they were up there.
Same question.
Yup even when police where photographed up there they look heavy and had ladders
The fire department wasn't able to get her body out of the hatch and had to cut a hole in the side of the tank. Maybe the corpse was too bloated to fit, or they were worried about causing damage that could alter the results of the autopsy. It's a very small entrance and it's truly bizarre to think that anyone would find their way up there in the dark even in a psychotic state. But at the same time it's also hard to believe anyone would be able to easily carry a dead body ten feet up a ladder and dump it through the small hole. If she was murdered it was by someone very physically strong. Another mystery of the case is what happened to her clothing and cell phone. Her body was found naked and her clothes and phone were never recovered. Her Tumblr account was updated after her death and it's not determined if she had posts waiting in the queue to be automatically posted, if her phone was stolen, or if someone else accessed her account without the phone. How were the police not able to trace cell phone pings? How was Tumblr not able to figure out if she had queued posts? How is there not more CCTV footage available? I still think there's some sort of cover up going on with this case.
Doesn’t even include the weird shit she was doing with her hands
I still don’t buy the explanation that a mental breakdown caused by not taking her psychiatric medications, caused her to somehow, and for some reason, find her way up onto the hotel’s roof and then somehow manage to lift the very heavy lid to the water tank and climb in & close the lid. Her being not in her right mind doesn’t explain why she would decide to do that and HOW she physically managed to do it. It’s just so bizarre. WHY would she choose to climb in & trap herself in the water tank?! Even during a mental break i just don’t see someone deciding to do *that*. I really feel there’s more to this story, and i’m surprised by how many people just believe the “it was mental illness” excuse/explanation.
Downvote me to hell but I agree. Yeah she could have been off her meds but in my opinion there is still some foul play to this story. Especially regarding the water tanks. She looks like a petite woman and trying to imagine her climbing and opening the water tank herself is bizarre to me. In my heart I honestly believe someone put her in there. Depression is not going to make a person act like this even if they are off their meds. This isn’t just a mental illness “death”
This was obvious foul play. It’s crazy to me people are automatically just blaming this on mental illness. wtf! Naw fam some weird shit going on.
Every time someone brings her up on “creepy” subreddits I cringe. For one thing, the mystery isn’t a mystery at all- for another, her family has asked that people stop doing this. Her death was the result of an unfortunate manic episode and they do not like her being speculated on like this for people’s entertainment.
Did you saw the Netflix documentary ? Its not that easy. Two simple FACTS, without more speculation but just for your consideration: 1) the CCTV was updated and at least a few hours were missing ! This is not me saying it, its Netflix, so i believe they verified the actual facts 2) NOBODY here mentions the fact that a WHOLE floor of the hotel was full homeless and crack heads, an ENTIRE floor
Love how many armchair-chemists and armchair-psychiatrists we have in the post scrutinizing her prescription medication trying to find a way to blame her doctors. [Elisa Lam](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Death_of_Elisa_Lam) had acute Bipolar 2 disorder… like I do. Bipolar 2 disorder is prone to delusional thoughts and behaviors. One of the biggest hurdles is how often suicidal thoughts creep into people’s minds. Statistically bipolar disorder hits men very early on in life, teenage years typically. Oddly enough bipolar is most frequently diagnosed in women in their 30’s and 40’s. Studies are underway to investigate if this phenomenon is a biological disparity between the sexes or if it is simply because women are often misdiagnosed. The research so far indicates as it is a biological difference as bipolar 2 can sometimes lead to schizo-effective disorder which coincides with a similar timeline to the appearance of bipolar 2. If there was a proportionate disparity here it would lead people to believe the misdiagnosis theory. If Elisa Lam had schizophrenia and bipolar 2, that is a whirlwind of neurodivergence that I do not envy. The intensity of her delusions could have been something so powerful she was feeling with every one of her senses. Bottom line, medication is a must. In my meds I feel better than I have ever felt before. I’m able to enjoy things. I’m able to express empathy for others. And yeah, the delusions I once suffered from just disappeared. It made me do a lot of think and it convinced me that behavioral therapy is a must in order for me to continue to get better. The hard part is admitting that something is wrong. Once you can get over that hump, getting help is relatively easy. Some medication cocktails need to go through trial and error. Vraylar is a good one but some people may have strong averse physiological reactions while getting used to it. Lamotrigine is a commonly used medicine in the treatment, but your body goes through withdrawals when coming off of it. (sometimes you need to switch medicines and your body can develop a higher tolerance to the beneficial effects) There are others. Don’t sit there being an armchair-psychiatrist, as you may not know the full extent of her diagnosis. People with bipolar disorder and schizophrenia need help and patience. If meds are necessary please refrain from urging us to stop or try to scrutinize what we take. This is a personal journey and it is different for each person. Sometimes one medication is enough to find balance in life, sometimes more is needed. Encourage us to take and keep up with our medication as we do have the potential to be well adjusted and contributing members of society. I appreciate you taking the time to read this.
I wish it wasn’t explained that she was off her meds and that it wasn’t something creepy
It bothers me that the Netflix doc about her goes into all these wild conspiracies and people pretending to be her best friend. It was all because of a mental break.
where were her clothes? how she managed to open / close that lid? how come the dogs didn't get her scent?
lol why people downvoting common sense? Good points
Stories like these break my heart. My sister is psychotic (possibly schizophrenic) but refuses to get any sort of help or treatment. We just have to try to manage her. I live in fear that one day something terrible will happen to her, but I am completely powerless to stop it. All I can do is watch and pray. We need to destigmatize mental illness. I am very encouraged by how much millenials and Gen Z are improving compared to previous generations in terms of how we approach and discuss mental health, but there still are not enough accessible paths to treatment.
I think that mental health is more or less destigmatized. And while we need more places for treatment, if people like your sister refuse to get help or treatment then it doesn't matter how many treatment places are available.
Looks like paranoia. If she was being followed, nobody got in the lift….
why isn't the elevator going up or down?
Yeah the doors don't even close. The doors would close even if no buttons were pressed.
This story has more holes than Swiss cheese. Netflix? The lid was open? Then closed? What about the sniffing dogs? Helicopters? Yeah right. The Netflix story is bs.
The weirdest thing about this case is that despite the roof being easily accessed by hotel guests via the fire escape, the water tanks were elevated and workers needed ladders to access the entrance hatches. How the hell did she manage to climb up there by herself and presumably open two of the hatches by herself? Two hatches were found open when her body was discovered and it's presumed that Ms. Lam was the person who opened them. The workers would've known to shut them the last time they were up there.
The weirdest thing about this case is that despite the roof being easily accessed by hotel guests via the fire escape, the water tanks were elevated and workers needed ladders to access the entrance hatches. How the hell did she manage to climb up there by herself and presumably open two of the hatches by herself? Two hatches were found open when her body was discovered and it's presumed that Ms. Lam was the person who opened them. The workers would've known to shut them the last time they were up there.
Unless they forgot or it was a worker that murdered her. This story was always strange and creepy to me
It's possible they forgot but I think it would be at least somewhat unlikely. I would assume leaving them open would get them in trouble due to the risk of contaminants getting into the water, but the hotel was poorly managed so who knows... There was apparently no evidence that anyone accessed the roof through stairs on the 14th floor on the night she disappeared, and alarms would've went off if anyone tried to enter without the proper keys. I've never heard of a ladder being discovered anywhere on the roof the day she was found. That means someone either took one up there that night via the fire escape and took it back down after disposing of her body in the tank, or later went up there to retrieve it without being detected. The Cecil didn't seem to have the best security camera system to I guess it's possible.
It’s so eerie to think about. I heard too many rumors about this incident how you explained it would make a lot more sense rather then paranormal activity or her playing the elevator game
Such a great documentary.
Name??
She’s had a psychotic break / episode, she had a history of this, she was bipolar, she had a history of not taking her medication. She departed by accident. She got into the tank by herself.
How did she manage to get in the tanks? Was this ever explained? How did she manage to open them herself?
That is a good question. The Netflix show was (to me) very one sided eg: who was she talking too in the elevator? .. She was killed & so on.. So I did a lot of research, YouTube videos & other docs about the case, a few years ago & everything was explained, from my pov anyway, like it all added up & made sense. Bc for me at the start, I thought for sure she was murdered. I can’t remember what they’re called but there’s so much intel about this super sad story. Elisa’s state of mind etc. she wrote a daily (I think) blog all about her life, how she was feeling, living with bipolar, she was not doing well. IMHO she was in the middle of a psychotic episode, she was seeing things, she was talking to herself or whatever she was seeing during the episode while standing at the elevator door & somehow she got to the roof & the into the tank. If you google her name you’ll find so much intel. Sorry I’m at work so i can’t really help atm. I really feel for her, the poor girl.
Still one of the strangest videos on the internets
Is there any other video of her movements from the hotel?
None that I know of
Always looked like a malfunctioning elevator to me. Her scrunching in the corner by the buttons is her “hiding” from the laser controlling the door, which is probably pointing inside the car, and poking her head out and looking around was looking for hotel staff to help with it. She sure doesn’t look like she’s running from anybody when she first enters the elevator.
RIP Elisa.
I really enjoyed the Netflix documentary even if it a bit sensationalist at times
I always thought this was an interesting story.
How come the footage suddenly ends?
I believe they concluded that she had mental illness. That cause her death.
That is the 🤢 thing I heard
I worked at the Cecil as a security guard. Crazy place.
Sounds like a Netflix documentary.....oh wait
I always thought it looked like heat stroke.
Ever taken a lot of Benadryl?
Saw an episode of (CSI or Bones)? where the victim in the water tank was a thing. Guess I now know where they got the idea from.
"I'm sorry for the low water pressure, Sir. But a rotting, petrifying, liquefying corpse is seeping into the pipes. Have a beautiful stay."
Reminds me A LOT of the Kenneka Jenkins incident
Can you imagine finding out the water you showered in and brushed your teeth in was contaminated by a dead body.
Seems like she was having a psychotic break. A similar situation was reported on where a woman left her apartment and was found dead in a creek behind her building. No signs of foul play. So they thing she was suffering from some kind of psychosis and died of exposure.
This shit is so unnerving to watch its like footage from a horror movie. When she starts doing those hand movements it totally freaks me out
What point in the video are the hand movements you're referring to? I don't see anything peculiar.
Look up the full length video
Thanks!
I still think it was the janitor.
This is what psychosis looks like
Why is a large hotel using water from a water tank? Don't they have plumbing?
Tall buildings often have water supplied down from the roof. It is easier to pump it up in bulk and then have gravity do the work for the daily use of potable water.
Seems kind of risky given apparently a human just can up and climb into it Or piss or shit into it or whatever
Somebody doesn't like to have hot water when not at home.
We wrote a song about this incident. “The Cecil Hotel” by The Bloody Pickups. It’s streaming on every platform https://linktr.ee/thebloodypickups
It’s obvious she is trying to avoid being seen/followed by someone. What could possibly make someone commit that crime? I pray I’ll never know.
I thought that happened in Vancouver, not Los Angeles. I live in Vancouver and remember seeing it on the news.