Woman loses leg after it gets stuck on travelator at Bangkok airport

BANGKOK – A woman had part of her leg amputated after she got stuck in a travelator at Bangkok’s Don Mueang International Airport on Thursday (June 29) morning.

The emergency procedure was performed by a medical team at the airport, before she was rushed to Bhumibol Adulyadej Hospital.

She has since been transferred to Bumrungrad International Hospital, which announced that her leg can be reattached, reported the Thaiger news site.

The update on the victim’s condition was given by airport director Karun Thanakunjeeraphat in a press conference on Thursday afternoon.

Mr Karun added that the travelator in question, which has been operating since 1996, was manufactured by Hitachi, reported Thaiger. He said the system has not been updated and its sensors are different from those found on newer travelators.

Mr Karun said the airport already had plans to replace several old travelators by 2025, but may speed up the replacement process now.

The young woman was about to board a flight to Nakorn Sri Thammarat in southern Thailand when the accident took place on Thursday morning.

Footage from the security cameras at the airport shows her falling after being hit by a suitcase when she was on the travelator between departure gates four and five, reported The Nation.

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Her leg got stuck on the edge of the travelator belt after she fell, and she was seen to be in agonising pain while struggling to free her leg. The incident did not lead to delays in flights arriving at or departing from the airport.

The airport management expressed their sympathies to the victim and said they would pay her medical bills as well as compensate her for the partial loss of her left leg, a post on the airport’s Facebook page said.

Mr Karun also said he would update the public once investigations are completed.

This article was first published in The Straits Times. Permission required for reproduction.