[imagesource:needpix]

New fear unlocked: those moving walkways to help you speedily make your way around airports could potentially swallow your leg and lead to an amputation.

It happened to a 57-year-old Thai woman in Bangkok’s Don Mueang Airport. Somehow, her leg became caught by the moving walkway, forcing medical professionals to amputate her leg then and there to save her.

According to the airport’s officials, a medical team was sent to cut her left leg off above the knee as she sat half-swallowed by the escalator.

Images shared online show the gruesome scene, with one showing the yellow comb-like plates broken off from where they typically cover the edge of the belt where the moving walkway ends. This must have been the fault in the machinery that allowed her leg to get chowed:

Image: Viral Press

Image: Viral Press

Her suitcase was also missing two wheels, which the airport director Karun Thanakuljeerapat, said were found underneath the belt, per The Guardian:

…but it was unclear how it might relate to the accident. He said walkways at the airport were checked daily, with an additional monthly inspection. He said the walkway had been closed and a team of engineers was inspecting it to determine the cause of the incident.

Karun expressed his “deepest condolences regarding the accident,” in a news conference, adding “I’d like to insist that we will ensure that no such accident will happen again.”

Image: Viral Press

He said the airport would be fully responsible for the woman’s medical costs and would be open to negotiations regarding other compensation.

Per CNN, the yet-to-be-identified woman’s son, Krit Kittirattana, released a statement on Facebook in which he described the accident as “heartbreaking”:

“My mother has continued to express her strength through her face and voice. But deep down we know that her heart is broken since she suddenly lost her leg,” he wrote.

He said his mother has had an operation but still faces risks of potential complications and that doctors were keeping a close watch for any signs of infection.

It is not clear if she was able to reattach her missing leg or not.

[sources:guardian&cnn]