Hotel owner left trapped in a lift for FOUR DAYS at his deserted Austrian ski resort says military training helped him survive



Lift at empty Hotel Eden broke down while boss, 58, was inside

Thomas Fleetwood had left his mobile phone in the office at hotel

The Hotel Eden in Bad Gastein, Austria, was closed at the time



He was rescued when a friend noticed mail piling up outside



A hotel owner who spent four days stuck in a lift without food, water or heat at his deserted Austrian ski resort said his military training helped him to survive the ordeal.

Swedish-born Thomas Fleetwood, 58, got stuck in the tiny one-man lift when it broke down as he was making his way to the ground floor after doing a final check of the closed Hotel Eden in Bad Gastein.

Mr Fleetwood, who lives alone at the Alpine resort and had left his mobile phone in the office, claims the military training he received in his home country helped him to stave off panic.



Trapped: Swedish-born hotel owner Thomas Fleetwood says he has the military training he received in his home country to thank for his survival

'The lift has never broken down before, I just hadn't expected anything to happen,' said Mr Fleetwood.

'I broke a small glass panel at the front door of the lift and that gave me some fresh air, and tried to take off the roof of the lift to climb out, but that didn't help either.'

Stuck: The hotel owner was trapped when the tiny lift at the resort in Bad Gastein broke down

Mr Fleetwood was finally rescued when a friend noticed mail piling up outside Hotel Eden and used a spare key to come in and check on the owner.

He called firemen after realising what had happened.

'It was foolish to have gone in the lift in an empty hotel without a mobile telephone, but I am proud of myself that I didn't panic and used my military training to get through,' said Mr Fleetwood.

'I would talk to myself and was making my plans for the future while I was stuck there.'

'Foolish': Mr Fleetwood was rescued from his closed hotel in Bad Gastein (pictured), Austria, when a friend came to check on him after noticing mail piling up outside



