CLOSED: Washington Monument has more elevator problems

The Washington Monument will be closed to tourists through at least Saturday after another elevator malfunction. The National Park Service says this time, the elevator inside the monument malfunctioned Friday at the 490-foot level after passengers got off at the observation level.

No one was trapped on the elevator during Friday afternoon's malfunction, but park rangers did have to walk 86 visitors down to the bottom via the stairs. Technicians are assessing the cause of the malfunction, but NPS says the monument will be closed at least through Saturday while repairs are made.

This isn't the first time this week that the monument has been forced to closed to visitors. The same thing happened on Tuesday night, when the elevator stopped about halfway up the 555-foot obelisk. A few dozen passengers aboard the elevator had to walk down that time. It reopen to the public at the normal time on Wednesday morning.

The landmark was also closed for a few days in February so repairs could be made to an elevator control box. Friday's closure marks the sixth time the elevator has broken since the monument reopened in 2014 after damage caused by DC's earthquake was repaired.