Tributes have been paid to a young couple who died after they became trapped in a flooded lift.

Dean Shoshani and Stav Harari, both 25 years old, died when they became stuck in a lift at the parking level of an apartment building that filled with water in Tel Aviv, Israel, on Saturday.

Reports said emergency services had to use scuba gear to rescue the victims, sawing through the roof of the lift to reach the pair.

Ms Harari was reportedly transferred to the Sourasky Medical Center in Tel Aviv in critical condition and suffering from hypothermia.

Doctors could not revive her. Mr Shoshani was reportedly reanimated at the scene and later taken to the Sheba Medical Center at Tel Hashomer where he died of his injuries.

It’s not clear if the couple lived in the building.

One of the building’s tenants, whose name has not been reported, told local media he called the police three times, only to get an answer on the third attempt.

Alfred Jadid, the owner of the building, said he got a call 20 minutes after the pair became trapped.

“When I arrived, the water had already reached the ceiling,” he said.

“I started going crazy, we tried opening the elevator doors, but to no avail."

"Police only arrived about an hour later, but how would that help? The fire brigade arrived there after an hour and a half. All these floods are caused by the drainage system's failure. We have floods around here all the time. All the time."

According to the Tel Aviv-Jaffa Municipality, the incident is under investigation.

Eden Shoshani, Mr Shoshani’s mother, said the couple moved into an apartment a few months ago.

“You made a home that was sweet and pleasant – just like you,” she said.

“Now you’ve passed on together. I remember and treasure every moment with you.”

Mr Shoshani and Ms Harari were reportedly buried in adjacent graves at the Yarkon Cemetery in Tel Aviv on Sunday with thousands attending the young couple’s funeral.

“We are Jews and we believe in the holiness of the Holy One, Blessed be He,” Shoshani’s father, Tzion, said, according to Haaretz. “Abundant water can’t snuff out love, and rivers cannot wash it away – but rivers swept them away.”

Harari’s father, Itzik, said, “Stav, you are our life, our oxygen, we love you more than we love ourselves. Watch over us from above.”

According to local media, 83mm of rain fell in coastal Israeli cities at the weekend within just a few hours. (Yahoo)

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