Grandmother, 56, desperately screamed ‘I’m dying’ after getting stuck down manhole

While emergency responders arrived minutes after she fell during the freak accident, one eyewitness said that by then horrified onlookers could not “hear her screaming anymore”

A freak accident led to a grandmother’s death after she fell into a sewer, with horrified onlookers describing the moment the woman dropped down the manhole.

Donike Gocaj, 56, fell into the uncovered manhole in New York, dropping about 15 feet into the darkness where she lay screaming “I’m dying” as she waited for help to arrive.

Police and eyewitnesses confirmed that the horror incident took place near East 52nd Street and Fifth Avenue, with the beloved mum and grandmother falling into the hole after she stepped out of her car, which was parked in front of Manhattan ’s flagship Cartier store.

Eyewitness Carl Wood watched on as horror unfolded before his eyes, just before 11.30pm on Monday. He said: “She was just in the hole screaming that she was dying,”

Mr Wood added that the manhole – which belonged to Energy company Con Edison – lay open just feet away from the door of Ms Gocaj’s Mercedes-Benz SUV.

The fire safety specialist was on his way to work when he saw every New Yorker’s worst nightmare unfold, and sprinted across to the open manhole as he dialled 911.

He told the New York Post that Ms Gocaj had taken only a few steps before dropping into the manhole. She didn’t appear to be “distracted” or on her phone, he said.

“You know, it was like in those cartoons. She just disappeared into the hole,” Mr Wood 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.”

Other bystanders also desperately tried to help, Mr Wood added, revealing one man attempted to let himself down so she could grab his legs to pull herself up. Another person brought over a ladder that proved to be too short to reach her.

Mr Wood said it seemed to be incredibly hot in the hole and that Ms Gocaj appeared to be “in a puddle of water.”

“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, adding that firefighters were wearing masks as they pulled her from the hole, swearing as they went.

While paramedics and emergency responders from the Fire Department of New York arrived mere minutes later, Mr Wood said by that time they could no longer “hear her screaming anymore.”

First responders pulled her unconscious, unresponsive body from the hole and rushed her to a nearby hospital, where she later died from her injuries, officials confirmed.

The horror death is now under official investigation, with questions raised as to why a manhole was uncovered in the first place.

A spokesperson from energy company Con Ed told the Post that, according to video footage from the area, a passing truck appeared to have dislodged the manhole cover less than 15 minutes before Ms Gocaj fell to her death.

The spokesperson said in a statement: “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 Fifth Avenue drove over it. Approximately 12 minutes later, the person involved in the incident parked her car nearby.

“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.”

Wrappers for burn sheets used to cover burn victims were still visible on the ground at the scene on Tuesday.

The Office of Chief Medical Examiner said it was investigating the cause of death.