The incident happened at the Wilson Houses on 105th Street just after 5 p.m.
Firefighters say the man was trapped in an elevator between the first and second floors and is suffering from a leg fracture after most of his body was trapped inside the elevator as his feet dangled outside between floors.
Paramedics rushed the victim into an ambulance, doing their best to protect him from the brutally cold temperatures.
He was taken to Harlem Hospital in critical condition.
"He was in a lot of pain," a neighbor said. "He said 'Call the cops!'"
Resident say the elevators are constantly under repair and not in use, and some say climbing 20 flights of stairs is just unacceptable.
No one answered the door at the victim's 11th floor apartment, but neighbors say his son went to the hospital with him.
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