A ground worker at New Orleans’ airport died in an accident Tuesday when her hair became entangled in machinery while she was offloading an aircraft, officials said.
Jermani Thompson was servicing a Frontier Airlines flight around 10 p.m. when the accident happened, Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport said.
Thompson, 26, an employee of GAT Airline Ground Support, was rushed to a hospital, where she died, the airport said.
GAT Airline Ground Support CEO Mike Hough said Thompson’s hair became entangled with the machinery of a belt loader.
“We are heartbroken and are supporting her family and her friends as best as we are able,” he said.
Director of Aviation Kevin Dolliole said the airport was deeply saddened.
“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," Dolliole said in a written statement.
Frontier Airlines also expressed its condolences and said its thoughts were with Thompson’s friends and family.
Thompson’s mother, Angela Dorsey, told NOLA.com that her daughter loved basketball and was a graduate of Tougaloo College in Jackson, Mississippi.
“She was my baby girl. Everybody loved her,” Dorsey told the news outlet, which is the online home of The Times-Picayune/The New Orleans Advocate newspaper.
