At the O'Hare International Airport in Chicago, a terrible tragedy took place. Per CNN, firefighters were called to the airport early in the morning. There was a report that someone was pinned in the machinery used to move and sort baggage. Larry Langford, a spokesperson for the Chicago Fire Department, stated that they found a 57-year-old woman entangled in the conveyor belt system in the baggage room.
Langford went on to explain that the baggage room isn't readily available to the public. It's currently unclear how the woman managed to get there. Scott Allen, a spokesperson representing the U.S. Department of Labor, stated that an "official with the Occupational Health and Safety Administration visited the scene and learned the woman was not an airport employee."
The firefighters then turned the scene over to the police. The Chicago Police Department's communications office stated in an email that the woman was found unresponsive. Unfortunately, she was pronounced dead on the scene. Further, an investigation is ongoing. Initially, the police communications office said the woman was discovered five hours before firefighters and paramedics arrived.
However, it would later be clarified that the surveillance footage showed the woman walking in the baggage room at that time. She wasn't officially found deceased until five hours later. That's when the 911 call was conducted.
A Woman Dies After Getting Trapped In Baggage Carousel
The only available footage shows the woman walking into the baggage room. Investigators are trying to uncover what exactly happened to her. An autopsy will be conducted soon with the Cook County Medical Examiner's office to officially determine the cause of the woman's death.
Two years ago, per PEOPLE, an airport worker died after her hair became caught in machinery. According to the outlet, her hair "became tangled in a belt loader — a machine used to transfer baggage to and from an airplane — which led to fatal injuries."
At the time, Thompson was removing baggage from a flight. Her family was, understandably, devastated.
"She loved basketball. ... She was my baby girl. Everybody loved her," said Angela Dorsey, the mother of Jermani Thompson. Thompson's sister-in-law also spoke about the tragedy.
"She went to work one morning and never made it home," Nichole Branch said. "This is just so unreal right now."
