Dallas, TX — Earlier this summer, a woman working at a recycling plant in Dallas was badly injured after her hair was caught in a conveyor belt. 34-year old Reyna Gonzales lost 70% of her scalp in the accident and had to undergo extensive surgery — of which she is still recovering from.
The accident happened on Friday, July 24, 2015 while Gonzales was working at the recycling plant.
She told the news that she was near a conveyor belt during her shift when something caught her and pulled her backward. She then blacked out and woke up with major injuries to her head.
Authorities later filled in the gaps for her, saying that her ponytail had gotten caught in a conveyor belt and pulled most of her scalp from her head. She was taken to Methodist Dallas Center and was immediately placed into the carea of a specialized plastic surgeon who has helped minimize the scarring & damage.
The name of the plant wasn’t ever disclosed and it’s not clear where in Dallas it’s located.
Commentary:
I’m a little surprised that the news is just now talking about this accident because this is a big deal in more ways than one. First, it highlights the dangers of these kind of workplaces and underscores the necessity of proper safety equipment. I hope there was some kind of investigation done here because if the plant had failed to give instructions on how to safely operate the conveyor belt or even failed to hand out safety gear, some of this accident could be their fault.
Secondly, this is a big deal because workers who are injured like this deserve a little more closure, as far as I’m concerned. There’s a saying that goes “It shouldn’t cost you your life to make a living,” referring to dangerous working conditions. I completely support that statement 110%, because it’s unacceptable if workers are needlessly exposed to danger while a supervisor or manager sits idly by
Like I said, I think there needs to be a solid investigation done here, because I suspect that this wasn’t simply a “freak” accident, like the news keeps implying.
— Grossman Law Offices
