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<p>Luzerne County received clearance Thursday to repair the prison elevator linked to the July deaths of an inmate and correctional officer.</p><p>County Court of Common Pleas Judge William H. Amesbury had issued an order in August barring repairs after Schindler Elevator Corp. initiated a court action seeking preservation of the elevator until an inspection could be arranged to secure evidence that may be needed for potential future litigation involving the deaths.</p><p>Schindler had been involved in the elevator&#8217;s maintenance. Other parties also intervened in the court action and requested inspections, according to court records: elevator installer Otis Elevator Company; Nagle Elevator Inspections &amp; Testing LLC, which may have inspected the subject elevator; and representatives of the deceased.</p><p>Inmates at the prison on Water Street in Wilkes-Barre were placed on lockdown Jan. 4 as around 25 inspectors, attorneys and videographers examined the elevator.</p><p>Amesbury lifted the order on Thursday at the county&#8217;s request, and there were no objections, said county Chief Solicitor Romilda Crocamo.</p><p>As of Thursday, no litigation has been filed over the deaths, Crocamo said.</p><p>The prison&#8217;s fifth-floor elevator door immediately gave way at the base July 18 when inmate Timothy Darnell Gilliam Jr., 27, fell backward and hit the elevator door, pulling 25-year-old prison corrections officer Kristopher D. Moules with him, a criminal investigation concluded.</p><p>The men fell 59 feet and 1 inch from the fifth floor to the top of the elevator car, which was stationary on the ground floor, and both died of multiple traumatic injuries, officials have said.</p><p>The elevator, which services five floors and a ground level, was deemed inoperable until repairs are made, the state Department of Labor and Industry decided after the deaths.</p><p>The county prison elevator had a valid state inspection certificate at the time of the deaths, county officials have said.</p><p>With one of two prison elevators out of commission, prison workers have struggled to deliver meals and move inmates, said county Manager C. David Pedri.</p><p>&#8220;I&#8217;m happy we&#8217;re able to move forward with repairs. It&#8217;s been a difficult burden on the prison staff to only have one elevator,&#8221; Pedri said.</p><p>The county has retained KONE Inc., based in Moline, Illinois, to develop an elevator repair plan. The company must submit proposed repairs to the state labor department and obtain a state building permit, Crocamo said.</p><p>Pedri said he does not yet have a cost repair estimate or a plan outlining the work that will be completed. KONE was selected for its expertise and because it has not performed work on county elevators in the past, he said.</p><p>&#8220;We wanted to bring in someone new,&#8221; he said. &#8220;We&#8217;re looking to move forward quickly on these repairs.&#8221;</p><p>Stephen Carr, a forensic elevator expert from California who holds a doctorate in engineering and computer sciences, told the Times Leader in July he believes the malfunction stemmed from a problem with the devices called &#8220;gibs&#8221; that keep the bottoms of elevator doors in their tracks.</p><p>Gibs that are loose, old or worn can give way under pressure and swing in and out at the bottom like dog doors, Carr has said.</p><style>
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<div class="neCaption">Luzerne County prison </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo0>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/02/web1_lccf03-2.jpg</photo0><caption0>Luzerne County prison </caption0><photoCredit0></photoCredit0></div></div>
<div class="metaInfo"><bylineMeta><p>By Jennifer Learn-Andes</p><p>jandes@www.timesleader.com</p></bylineMeta></div><div class="metaInfo"><shirttailMeta><p>Reach Jennifer Learn-Andes at 570-991-6388 or on Twitter @TLJenLearnAndes.</p></shirttailMeta></div>

Repairs cleared for Luzerne County prison elevator involved in July deaths