Baggage Handler at New Orleans Airport Dies after Her Hair Gets Caught in Machinery

A baggage handler died when her hair became entangled in the machinery of the belt loader at a New Orleans airport while unloading baggage for a Frontier Airlines flight on Tuesday night, officials said.

Jermani Thompson, 26, was injured around 10:20 p.m. local time on Tuesday, according to Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport officials. She was rushed to a local hospital, where she was pronounced dead, airport officials said.

“The doctor said that her hair got stuck in the conveyor, and they say they tried to cut her hair but they couldn’t,” her mother, Angela Dorsey, told NBC affiliate WDSU. “She died on her way to the hospital.”

“We are deeply saddened about the tragic loss of GAT Airline Ground Support team member, Jermani Thompson," Kevin Dolliole, the director of aviation for the airport, said in a statement. "The Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport extends its sincere condolences to her family and friends, and also to our partners at GAT and Frontier Airlines. Jermani was a part of our Airport family, and we will continue to support one another in any way we can during this trying time.”

Thompson worked for GAT Airline Ground Support, whose CEO, Mike Hough, said Thompson was fatally injured when her hair became entangled in a belt loader.

“We are heartbroken and are supporting her family and her friends as best as we are able,” Hough told NOLA.com.

Frontier Airlines also sent out condolences to her family in a statement.

Thompson was a former college basketball player who was passionate about the sport, her mother told WDSU.

“She loved basketball — that was her thing,” Dorsey said.

This article was originally published on TODAY.com