A witness has described the final moments of a woman who died in a freak accident in New York City today, after parking her car and stepping into an open manhole.
Donike Gocaj, 56, was heard screaming “I’m dying” repeatedly as people attempted to rescue her from the bottom of the 3m hole she had fallen into, near East 52nd Street and Fifth Avenue.
Eventually, the grandmother went silent and was unconscious when she was retrieved by emergency services.
She was taken to a nearby medical centre but was pronounced dead shortly after.
“She was just in the hole screaming that she was dying,” witness Carl Wood told The New York Post.
“Over and over she was like, ‘I’m dying, I’m dying’.”
Wood was headed to work when he heard the screams and rushed to help. He said the open manhole was very close to her car and the cover was nearby.
NEW: A 56-year-old woman plunged to her death after falling into an open manhole while getting out of her car in Midtown Manhattan.
— Fox News (@FoxNews) May 19, 2026
Emergency crews rushed her to the hospital, where she was later pronounced dead.
Authorities are now investigating how the manhole was left… pic.twitter.com/5yYDcJpgkI
Wood told The New York Post the woman took a couple of steps away from her car before falling. He said she did not appear to be on her phone or distracted.
“You know, it was like in those cartoons. She just disappeared into the hole,” he said.
“The cover was right next to the hole. It was just off the hole … the cover was just sitting there – but there was no cones, there was no barricades, there was nothing.”
Multiple people tried to help the woman back up before emergency services arrived, the man said.
According to the witness, the woman appeared to be in a puddle of water in the hole and he believed it was hot inside.
“Like maybe steaming hot water. So I’m not sure, but I’m assuming maybe she was burning up down there. Bad air down there,” he said.
Some reports stated the steam caused the woman to go into cardiac arrest.
A 56-year-old mother of two and grandmother died after falling into an uncovered manhole in New York City late Monday night. CBS News' Lilia Luciano has more. pic.twitter.com/0XrElKv8vM
— CBS News (@CBSNews) May 19, 2026
A statement from Con Edison, the company responsible for the manhole, said it is believed the manhole cover was dislodged by a passing truck minutes before the accident.
“We have reviewed video footage from the area which suggests that the cover was dislodged after a multi-axle truck turning onto 52nd Street from 5th Avenue drove over it.
“Approximately 12 minutes later, the person involved in the incident parked her car nearby,” the company said in a statement.
“We are reviewing the details, and while this is a rare occurrence, manhole covers can get displaced by heavy vehicles. Our thoughts remain with her family, and safety remains our top priority.”
The incident is now under investigation.
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