Airports of Thailand Plc (AOT) has concluded that a collapsed plate on a moving walkway caused a woman to fall and her leg to be severed at Don Mueang airport last month.
AOT president Kerati Kijmanawat said on Wednesday that investigation found that the moving walkway between Gates 4 and 5 of the second domestic terminal had a problem when one of its metal plates became detached from its frame, creating an opening.
Consequently a traveller fell into the mechanism and was seriously injured, said Mr Kerati, referring to the incident that happened at 8.21am on June 29. The victim was a 57-year-old woman who was about to board a flight to the southern province of Nakhon Si Thammarat.
The woman had to endure an emergency amputation of her left leg above the knee by medical personnel at the scene before being rushed to the nearby Bhumibol Adulyadej Hospital where her condition was stabilised.
She was later taken to Bumrungrad Hospital for further surgery and treatment. Her family later said they would file a complaint with police against the airport operator.
All 20 moving walkways at Don Mueang were suspended from service pending inspections and necessary upgrades.
The investigation into the accident was carried out by a committee including representatives from AOT, the Ministry of Transport, the Engineering Institute of Thailand, the Council of Engineers and an independent academic.
Mr Kerati apologised for the incident and promised AOT would cover the woman’s treatment costs and give her the best compensation.
He said that AOT would hire a third party to check all parts of all moving walkways at Don Mueang airport and also evaluate the maintenance standards of airport staff. It also intends to install sensors to detect any defects in plates on moving walkways.
Twenty moving walkways at Don Mueang airport were installed by Hitachi Co of Japan in 1996 and its certified local dealer, Siam Hitachi, has maintained them regularly ever since, airport management said earlier.
In a related development, the AOT board on Wednesday approved the transfer of Don Mueang general manager Karant Thanakuljeerapat to AOT as an adviser, effective from Oct 1. He will be succeeded by Vijit Kaewsaitiam, the current director of Chiang Mai airport.