Airports of Thailand (AoT) has ordered a safety check on every moving walkway at Bangkok’s Don Mueang airport, following an incident in which a woman lost a part of her left leg after falling on one of the airport’s travellators on Thursday.
The order was issued by AoT president Kerati Kijmanawat after the incident took place at the South Corridor in the airport’s domestic terminal at 8.40am yesterday.
It was reported that the victim — whose identity has not been revealed — was about to board a flight bound for Nakhon Si Thammarat when she fell on the walkway between Gate 4 and Gate 5.
Authorities believe the force of the fall exposed the walkway’s safety cover, causing the victim to be drawn into the travellator’s internal mechanism.
Mr Kerati said the victim was initially rushed to Bhumibol Adulyadej Hospital for further treatment, as her leg had to be amputated above the left knee by a medical team at the airport.
She was later transferred to Bumrungrad International Hospital for further treatment.
The AoT would like to convey its apologies for the incident and will cover all medical costs and compensate the victim for her injuries, he said.
Authorities will also launch a probe to determine whether the incident was caused by a malfunction or negligence.
Karant Thanakuljeerapat, the airport’s director, said all moving walkways across the airport were immediately turned off for a safety check following the incident.
The travellator in question, he said, had just been inspected as part of a routine maintenance process on June 21 before adding that checks are carried out every three months.
The walkway was made by Hitachi in Japan and has been in use since 1996.
Mr Karant said that the company had been informed about the incident.
AoT had been planning to upgrade all moving walkways inside the airport by 2025, but the plan will be moved up to the next fiscal year in light of the accident, he said.