Two nights ago, I was staying at the Hyatt Union Square when a group of kids pulled a dangerous prank that sent at least one woman to the hospital. Firefighters told another guest that this had been happening at hotels around the city, so I wanted to bring awareness in case any of you have an upcoming hotel stay in New York City.
The fire extinguisher “prank”
I want to start by saying I’ve stayed at the Hyatt Union Square many times and never had an issue. It’s my go-to hotel due to its location and great staff.
So when I entered the hotel lobby around 9 p.m. on Monday, I didn’t realize anything out of the orindary was happening. A group of guests was standing around the lobby, but I assumed they were waiting to enter the newly renovated lobby bar. The hotel has two elevator doors and the one on the left side was open.
When no one else entered, I got on and hit 9 for my floor. A few minutes after arriving in my room, I heard a brief crackling sound. Silence. Then I heard it again. I assumed it was the TV or maybe the phone? Then a clear voice came through what I realized was the intercom: “All guests can return to their rooms. There is NO fire.” That’s when it dawned on me that all the guests downstairs had evacuated due to a fire alarm.
Less than 10 minutes later, the fire alarm went off again. At first, I hesitated because I assumed it was another false alarm. But then I thought the odds of a second false alarm were slim, so I headed downstairs.
A few guests followed me down the staircase and were equally confused. Once we reached the seventh floor, a hotel staffer asked us if we had seen anyone coming down from the eighth floor. No one had.
The stairs lead to the side of the building, so we walked out in the cold and back to the lobby. There were already a dozen or so guests standing around, wondering what was going on. The fire department showed up and everyone was pretty calm.
The aftermath
Eventually, they announced everything was alright and we could return to our rooms. As I stood in line for the elevator, I asked the man in front of me what he thought may have happened.
He explained that a group of kids got on the elevator and went up to the 8th floor. They broke open the fire extinguisher case, triggering the alarm, then went knocking on people’s doors, yelling ‘FIRE!’ When people opened the door, they were sprayed in the face with the fire extinguishers.
I was shocked. How did he know this? He wordlessly pulled out his phone, opened WhatsApp, and showed me the security footage of the kids walking down the hall, knocking on doors.
I asked him how he got this footage and he explained that his friend was attacked when she opened the door to her room. She sent a text in the group chat, “I can’t breathe.” They rushed to help and called 911.
I asked him how the kids got up the elevator, since it required a keycard. He explained that only the elevator on the right required it. The one on the left did not – the kids knew that, apparently. He also claimed that the fire department told him this had been happening at hotels around the city and, despite the security footage, they had not caught the culprits.
Outstanding questions
I didn’t get a chance to ask more questions about when and where the incident occurred. Yes, the fire alarm went off twice in the previous hour, but when was his friend attacked? Since he had footage of the incident on his phone, it must have happened a lot sooner – probably earlier that day or even the night before.
In any case, I was glad more people weren’t injured (that I know of).
How to stay safe
I’m not writing this to cause panic and hysteria, but to raise awareness so it doesn’t happen to anyone else. Being sprayed in the face with a fire extinguisher isn’t a harmless prank but can cause suffocation and serious injury.
If you’re staying at a NYC hotel and someone knocks on your door yelling “FIRE,” don’t open it without checking who is there – even if the alarm is blaring. Wait for an intercom announcement or check that no one is outside your door before evacuating. And keep your phone with you, since that is what saved the woman at my hotel when she fell victim to this “prank.”
TLDR
Some kids in NYC are pulling a dangerous “prank” at hotels, where they steal fire extinguishers and bang on people’s doors yelling “FIRE!” When people open the doors, they get sprayed in the face with fire extinguishers.
