By Antonio Planas -
NBC News
A woman died last week at a Georgia factory while trying to reach a pair of AirPod headphones that fell under a conveyor belt, trapping her in a chain that moves the machine, authorities said.
According to a report on the incident from the Columbia County Sheriff's Office, a witness told investigators that
Alyssa Drinkard, 21
, an assembly line worker at the Club Car factory, dropped the AirPods under the conveyor belt when on duty around 9:45 pm ET on Friday.
The company manufactures golf carts and other vehicles.
Entrance to the Club Car plant in Augusta, Georgia.Google Maps
When she tried to remove the hearing aid from under the machine, Drinkard became caught in
the chain that moves the conveyor belt
, the witness explained, according to the report.
Because of the way Drinkard was trapped, the witness, who was identified as Fae'Zsha Smith, a co-worker, “couldn't get her [Drinkard] out, so she called maintenance to come turn off the machine.
[...] Once she was turned off, they called 911,” the report stated.
Emergency personnel freed Drinkard, of Grovetown, “cutting the metal structure around the conveyor belt so they could extract it,” the report expanded.
Drinkard still had a pulse when she was released from the machine.
Emergency personnel performed resuscitation measures before she was taken to the hospital, she expanded the document.
Club Car did not respond to NBC News' request for comment Wednesday afternoon.
In a statement to The Augusta Press, the company confirmed that a worker had suffered severe injuries last Friday night at its main manufacturing plant in Evans, before dying.
“Emergency services were notified immediately, and we thank them for their quick response to provide medical care and transportation to the hospital, where the worker unfortunately later died,” the company stated.
“Our sincere condolences and thoughts are with the family, friends and everyone affected by this loss.
“We are working with authorities and the contractor on an investigation to determine the events that led to the incident.”
Smith, 25, said Wednesday that
he hasn't been able to get images of Drinkard trapped
on the conveyor belt out of his head.
“I'm a little traumatized to have seen her like that,” Smith said, her voice sometimes shaking as she remembered her former teammate.
Drinkard was working across from Smith when he said he had dropped an AirPod under the conveyor belt, according to Smith.
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Smith then looked under the machine and saw the hearing aid.
He recalled that he told Drinkard that he would get it to him when it was safe to do so.
“She said, 'It's okay, I'll buy new ones,'” Smith said.
Only a few seconds passed before Smith looked down and saw
a horrifying scene
.
The machine had trapped Drinkard's arm, said Smith, who explained that it was bent and there was a significant amount of blood at the site, after Drinkard tried to reach the AirPods from his side of the workstation.
Drinkard had worked at the plant for about a year, Smith testified.
She was quiet and well-liked by the other production line workers.
He said that Ella Drinkard had been invited out to hang out with her colleagues on several occasions, and she only showed up sometimes, but when she did, her presence was always noticeable.
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“When he went out, he always laughed.
She was always very sweet.
She always had a smile on her face,” Smith said.
Drinkard's relatives could not immediately be reached for comment Wednesday afternoon.
Smith, who has not returned to work since the incident, said she was not sure if she ever would because she
is concerned about her safety
.
According to Club Car's website, the Augusta-based company has been an industry leader in golf cart manufacturing for decades.
The firm claims on the portal that it manufactures the official golf cart used in the PGA of America, the PGA TOUR Tournament Players Club Network and the European Tour.
The company was at one time considered one of the safest in the country, according to the website.