Residents left stranded by broken lift

Residents of a Sydney public housing estate are furious at being left stranded by the failure of all the lifts in their high-rise building.

Many can't manage stairs so found themselves stuck for hours either outside, or up in their flats.

At 30 storeys, it’s the tallest building in Waterloo and is home to the elderly and disabled.

A tenant Michael Bardaczew told 7News: "It's not safe enough for 300 people living in it."

Last night many were marooned in the foyer or upstairs as one of the building's lifts has been out since Sunday and yesterday the other failed.

Tenant Danny Lee said: "I'm in a wheelchair and I can't get upstairs so I'm stuck here. I can't go nowhere."

The were forced to sit for hours, despite countless calls to the Housing Department. Some gave up.

An 82-year-old tackling a lot of stairs and an ambulance crews arrived to a report of a heart attack on the 29th floor.

Police Rescue also arrived and they all had to take the stairs to reach the patient.

"And if they needed to carry a person out, they needed to clamber down the stairs and time is life," says Ross Smith Waterloo Neighborhood Advisory Board.

Eventually, one lift was back in action. While getting up and down in this building remains a challenge for residents, it's only three years ago when this whole Waterloo Green precinct received an upgrade. One of the things promised was better maintenance.

Housing NSW says it's waiting for parts.