On February 19, 2013, news about America’s Most Haunted Hotel shocked the world. A woman was found dead on the roof, and no one knew how she got there. Elisa Lam, born in 1991, was a 21 year old Canadian college student looking to travel the world. She began her journey in California, planning to stop in Los Angeles. While she was there, she booked a room at the Cecil Hotel. The day she planned on checking out, Elisa went missing without a trace. After her parents didn’t hear from her for a few days, they called into the Los Angeles Police Department, filing a missing persons report. Two weeks later she was found dead on the roof of the Cecil, floating in the water tank. This brings us to the unanswered question: What happened to Elisa Lam?
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Elisa started an account on Blogspot back in 2010 that went by the title Esther Fields, which paralleled her Tumblr account, Nouvelle/Nouveau. She wrote out her feelings, talking about her depression and internal battles. She had to drop most of her college classes, stating that she had “been at university for 3 years” yet “only managed to complete three courses” (Lam). She could barely get out of bed some days, let alone attend classes. Her posts were a cry for help, but no one cared to pay attention. Her family verified the presence of a psychiatric disorder, and according to Travolta, Elisa had been struggling with her mental health for multiple years. She had been diagnosed with bipolar disorder and depression, and was on multiple medications such as Wellbutrin, Lamotrigine, Quetiapine, Dexedrine Spansule, and Venlafaxine. These are commonly prescribed for patients with schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, and/or ADHD. She had no reported attempts of suicide, although there was a point in time when she started having hallucinations due to her not taking her medications. Her parents were skeptical of letting her travel on her own due to her history, afraid of something happening to their little girl. Little did they know she would not come back …show more content…
No one had seen her since the day before, and only one camera in the elevator caught a glimpse of her. The hotel released this footage after the police analyzed it, but something seemed off. The time stamp in the bottom left corner appears to have been altered. Even though it was blurry, you could tell that the seconds jumped and the milliseconds were slower than normal. Elisa was seen frantically pressing all the buttons, cowering in the corner, then poking her head out of the door as if she was checking for someone. She then stepped out of the elevator, completely walking out of frame. At one point you could also see what looked like the tips of someone’s shoes, leaving us to wonder who it could have been. 20 days after this footage, hotel residents started sending in complaints about a foul taste in the water along with low water pressure. So, the hotel sent Santiago Lopez to check the 1,000 gallon tank located on the roof of the Cecil Hotel. One of the lids was open, and upon inspection he was greeted by the naked corpse of Elisa Lam. She was floating face up with her clothes, watch, and key card next to her. Santiago immediately called the police, and the investigation continued. The Los Angeles Police Department had previously brought in their K-9 units, searching the hotel thoroughly for any trace of Elisa. They were able to track her scent all throughout the hotel until halfway down a hallway,
Elisa started an account on Blogspot back in 2010 that went by the title Esther Fields, which paralleled her Tumblr account, Nouvelle/Nouveau. She wrote out her feelings, talking about her depression and internal battles. She had to drop most of her college classes, stating that she had “been at university for 3 years” yet “only managed to complete three courses” (Lam). She could barely get out of bed some days, let alone attend classes. Her posts were a cry for help, but no one cared to pay attention. Her family verified the presence of a psychiatric disorder, and according to Travolta, Elisa had been struggling with her mental health for multiple years. She had been diagnosed with bipolar disorder and depression, and was on multiple medications such as Wellbutrin, Lamotrigine, Quetiapine, Dexedrine Spansule, and Venlafaxine. These are commonly prescribed for patients with schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, and/or ADHD. She had no reported attempts of suicide, although there was a point in time when she started having hallucinations due to her not taking her medications. Her parents were skeptical of letting her travel on her own due to her history, afraid of something happening to their little girl. Little did they know she would not come back …show more content…
No one had seen her since the day before, and only one camera in the elevator caught a glimpse of her. The hotel released this footage after the police analyzed it, but something seemed off. The time stamp in the bottom left corner appears to have been altered. Even though it was blurry, you could tell that the seconds jumped and the milliseconds were slower than normal. Elisa was seen frantically pressing all the buttons, cowering in the corner, then poking her head out of the door as if she was checking for someone. She then stepped out of the elevator, completely walking out of frame. At one point you could also see what looked like the tips of someone’s shoes, leaving us to wonder who it could have been. 20 days after this footage, hotel residents started sending in complaints about a foul taste in the water along with low water pressure. So, the hotel sent Santiago Lopez to check the 1,000 gallon tank located on the roof of the Cecil Hotel. One of the lids was open, and upon inspection he was greeted by the naked corpse of Elisa Lam. She was floating face up with her clothes, watch, and key card next to her. Santiago immediately called the police, and the investigation continued. The Los Angeles Police Department had previously brought in their K-9 units, searching the hotel thoroughly for any trace of Elisa. They were able to track her scent all throughout the hotel until halfway down a hallway,