FILE No.128Unsolved
You are on the 5th floor of a department store when a power outage turns off the lights. The emergency lights are on and the building is calm.
The stairs are closed off for construction and cannot be used. The elevators and escalators have stopped completely because of the blackout. There is no barrier or obstacle blocking the escalators. A building announcement from the management says, "You may walk down the stopped escalators."
How did "I" get down to the first floor?
If you get stuck, open the hints one at a time, in order.
What does an escalator become when it stops?
Does the problem say the escalator cannot be used?
Are "not moving" and "cannot be passed" the same thing?
How did "I" get down to the first floor?
Choose the answer closest to the truth.
Walked down the stopped escalator like stairs
The answer is "Walked down the stopped escalator like stairs."
An escalator that is not moving is just a staircase. Nothing blocks passage.
Climbing out a window or prying open elevator doors is dangerous, and neither is mentioned in the problem. If you keep waiting, you have not "gone down."
Because you assume "the escalator has stopped, so it can't be used."
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