My goodness, I hope this person makes a quick recovery…
In this post:
Delta wing walker hit by waste disposal truck
@xJonNYC shares security camera footage of a terrible incident that happened on the ramp at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport (ATL) on Saturday, December 10, 2022. In the video, you can see a Delta Boeing 717 starting to pull into gate C36.
There seems to be a “wing walker” standing there to assist with the plane’s arrival, but in the video footage you can see a waste disposal truck hitting the person from behind and knocking them over at a high speed. Once the driver realizes he hit someone, he immediately stops the vehicle and gets out to help. Others are also seen running to assist this person.
Interestingly at the same time that this happens, you can hear someone announcing “attention lav techs, lav techs, please, please watch your speed out on the ramp, and pay attention to your surroundings.” It’s not entirely clear if that announcement was being made “live,” or if this was being made after the fact, when this footage was reviewed.
You can see the video for yourself below (though you may not want to, so use your own discretion).
Now that this has gotten some publicity, there’s an update about this incident, per a police report:
- The worker “was laying on the ground and bleeding from her head” when the responding officer arrived
- She was transported to Grady Memorial Hospital, where she was determined to be in stable condition
- The driver of the waste management vehicle told police that he “was looking down at his tablet” before hitting the woman
- The driver was cited, and airport security confiscated his airport badge, and he was escorted from the scene by Delta
I’m hugely relieved to hear that the woman who was hit is in stable condition, and is expected to make a recovery. The accident looked awful, and I could have seen this ending even worse (which isn’t to minimize the injuries she sustained). I hope Delta takes good care of this employee and her family, and gives her plenty of time to recover.
I’m surprised by how safe the ramp usually is
Obviously this is awful to see, and I hope precautions are taken to make sure this doesn’t happen again.
That being said, I’m kind of surprised by how few incidents generally happen on the ramp at airports. Yes, the speed limit is supposed to be low, but you also have a lot going on. You have people constantly in a rush, a really complicated system for traffic priority, a lot of congestion, a lot of distractions, a combination of people driving and walking, and you don’t necessarily have the most tenured employees across the board.
I’m always amazed by how smoothly this seems to go a vast majority of the time, so that makes it especially sad to see something like this happen.
Bottom line
A Delta ramp employee was hit by a waste disposal truck at Atlanta Airport on Saturday. Incidents like this are extremely rare, so it’s terrible to see something like this happen. This allegedly happened because the driver was looking down at a tablet. Fortunately the woman who was hit is expected to make a full recovery.
What do you make of this incident?
She's a teenager. A GoFundMe has been set up for her. https://www.fox5atlanta.com/news/atlanta-airport-delta-ramp-worker-hit-by-service-vehicle
That's horrible what happen to her, I pray she has a smooth recovery. Additionally, I would like to say that I am part of the Tim Dunn fan club. He is a pillar of this community and deserves our respect and admiration.
Looked at this post quickly and initially read it as awful delta employee hit by a truck :)
What a tragic accident.
The price you pay for Delta mindlessly being obsess with on time departure.
The tablet probably has a countdown timer.
That’s kind of a ridiculous takeaway.
Some idiot going over the ramp speed limit and not looking while he is driving has nothing to do with delta trying to get planes out on time. If this were a normal occurrence, Sure. But even then you’d look at the the safety protocols in place on the ramp. This is pretty clearly an idiot who wasn’t looking where he was going and going too fast while a woman was doing her job.
I don't think this person will have a speedy recovery.
thank you for the update on the condition of the victim, Ben.
The accident could have ended much worse.
Georgia has a hands free law - precisely because accidents like this can happen anywhere when a vehicle is in motion.
Hopefully the lady makes a full recovery and lots of people learn a very vaulable lesson.
If you need to look down to read an electronic device, stop the vehicle first.
I agree with Tim Dunn that "Never In Doubt" made a silly personal attack. Imbeciles like him or her should be banned from this site.
Excellent point Tom, er Tim.
You are the only one that runs around the internet using pseudonyms to trash other people.
You should be apologizing to the person who was hurt for even suggesting that there should be more of what she experienced.
But we know full well you don't have the maturity of any kind to admit you are wrong - let alone apologize.
Tim, just shut up. This article isn’t about you. While your mental fantasyland is cute and always very amusing to point out the logical and factual failures, there’s a time and a place for your nonsense and this is neither.
and yet you and your ilk manage to jump in to whatever conversation that I am involved in not because you add anything to the conversation but because you can't stand that someone else might have something to say that isn't about you.
Your comment above is helpful. Most of what you post that is fixated on me is not.
Just grow up.
And why don't you have the guts to post under...
and yet you and your ilk manage to jump in to whatever conversation that I am involved in not because you add anything to the conversation but because you can't stand that someone else might have something to say that isn't about you.
Your comment above is helpful. Most of what you post that is fixated on me is not.
Just grow up.
And why don't you have the guts to post under at least one of your real names and register your email so that you get something other than "guest" status on this site.
You're no longer a guest when you show up incessantly.
and then maybe you too can end up with the "diamond" status that I and others have earned from other readers.
LOL Tim, you realize that the "Diamond" moniker also counts how much/often you COMMENT on the blog too right? Pretty sure you got it that way and not from readers giving you some sort of "Miss Congeniality" badge on the site. Actually cracking up right now.
and the point is that guests can't get it because they won't validate their identity.
Nobody has a problem with people sharing their opinions and disagreeing with other people.
Readers of multiple sites including this one don't want politics, religion, race and other divisive issues including personal attacks on other people.
You and I don't agree on everything but you are civil. It isn't too much to ask other people to follow...
and the point is that guests can't get it because they won't validate their identity.
Nobody has a problem with people sharing their opinions and disagreeing with other people.
Readers of multiple sites including this one don't want politics, religion, race and other divisive issues including personal attacks on other people.
You and I don't agree on everything but you are civil. It isn't too much to ask other people to follow your standard.
And you, like me, are free to post as much here and anywhere else that you want. Ben knows how to contact us if he thinks it is too much.
Again. This article isn’t about you, Tim. You really should quit this incessant need for attention and your weird obsession with delta.
Apparently, you don’t realize how many people find you a joke. These other posters are not me. I have zero issues posting under my own pseudonym, using one just like you.
Unlike you, I respect independent bloggers that have built a business off their websites like Lucky, Gary, and Brett. I don’t ever...
Again. This article isn’t about you, Tim. You really should quit this incessant need for attention and your weird obsession with delta.
Apparently, you don’t realize how many people find you a joke. These other posters are not me. I have zero issues posting under my own pseudonym, using one just like you.
Unlike you, I respect independent bloggers that have built a business off their websites like Lucky, Gary, and Brett. I don’t ever suggest what they should write about or what they’re qualified to write or tell them to take down a negative article about delta, aa, or UA… something you do very frequently. I don’t find the need to become a member of a comment section to validate my essence. My comments show up immediately since I’ve been posting under the same handle for quite a while.
As noted below, “diamond status” doesn’t make you an expert or more reliable, it simply means you post far too often, as many point out to you all over the internet, on topics you know very little about from aircraft financing to 789 orders to revenue accounting to strategy.
Seriously, get a life.
and yet you and you and your ilk alone find the need to remind you.
Since you read CF so much, you should know the advice that he gives -which is just as appropriate here as anywhere else.
You DO NOT NEED TO REPLY to anything anyone says.
And you certainly have absolutely no place trashing anyone that bothers to post under their real name while you run around the internet under...
and yet you and you and your ilk alone find the need to remind you.
Since you read CF so much, you should know the advice that he gives -which is just as appropriate here as anywhere else.
You DO NOT NEED TO REPLY to anything anyone says.
And you certainly have absolutely no place trashing anyone that bothers to post under their real name while you run around the internet under some fake, made up name that is all about you and your ego.
And I post on many subjects. You clearly fixate on what is said about Delta and you and others allow me to live in your head so much that you pre-post what you think I would say.
Let me give you a strong suggestion - which I doubt you will take.
1. Sign up on this under your real name and validate your email.
2. post under your real name
3. Contribute what you want to whatever sites you want to participate on and quit worrying about what anyone else posts.
4. Accept that there are people who really do know some things that you clearly do not.
5. Control your incessant urge to respond to anyone and esp. people that say something positive about one thing or negative about another. Every airline is a business - not your mother.
6. Leave it to Ben, Brett and Gary and others to manage their own sites. They don't need you. Since I clearly still participate on this sites, they see value in having me there - which has been validated ON THIS SITE by other readers which does include the number of HELPFUL posts by others.
I can’t think of a person I’d take any advice from less than tim Dunn. Thanks. You constantly betray your ignorance on most things on this industry and have absolutely no spine when you get called out on the BS things you say.
It’s so amusing how you believe yourself to be the only one qualified to troll and no one is allowed to call you out on your BS. As I’ve said before, the...
I can’t think of a person I’d take any advice from less than tim Dunn. Thanks. You constantly betray your ignorance on most things on this industry and have absolutely no spine when you get called out on the BS things you say.
It’s so amusing how you believe yourself to be the only one qualified to troll and no one is allowed to call you out on your BS. As I’ve said before, the blog owners are more than welcome to reply to you, but they shouldn’t have to reply to such a self serving troll that tries to dictate what they can and can’t write about. You’ll notice they rarely do reply to you and when they do, usually Gary, it’s usually laughing at your post as the drivel it is then ignoring your follow up rant.
“ Since I clearly still participate on this sites, they see value in having me there” = I write and they don’t delete ALL my comments, therefore they like my participation.
Your logic baffles any functioning mind but then… only one of us has been actually banned, IP address and all, from other aviation blogs.
But thank you for the good laugh with your new obsession of registered blog commenters. What a strange new obsession that you’re infatuated with my registration status. Your skin is far too easy to get under
the hypocrisy is notable and astounding
You are absolutely obsessed with what I do.
I live rent free in your head and you let me remain there every time you cave to your desperate need to comment on what I write.
I was absolutely right that you wouldn't take my advice.
thank you for giving me the opportunity to be so much of your life.
You are full of yourself, I’ll give you that lol. No one is obsessed with you except your self. I care about correcting your lies. That’s about it. Beyond that; you provide a fun laugh between work to see what crazy you reply with. No one on earth would take advice from a banned internet troll. Lol
Hypocrisy, thy name is tim Dunn. Thanks for the obsession. You honor little old me :)
Who knew...
You are full of yourself, I’ll give you that lol. No one is obsessed with you except your self. I care about correcting your lies. That’s about it. Beyond that; you provide a fun laugh between work to see what crazy you reply with. No one on earth would take advice from a banned internet troll. Lol
Hypocrisy, thy name is tim Dunn. Thanks for the obsession. You honor little old me :)
Who knew registration on a blog was so important to you and so integral to your life.
What a loser.
A United employee suffered a similar accident at DEN last year I believe, hit by an Allied Fueling crew bus - a Jury awarded over $300m in damages to the injured person who was left paraplegic.
In my 30+ years in the industry, I've seen people back into spinning propellers, crushed between tow vehicles and aircraft, and sucked into jet engines. I've also seen wing walkers practicing their dance moves thinking that they're entertaining the passengers instead of diligently doing their job.
The ramp is a very dangerous environment. The fact that there haven't been more tragic accidents speaks to the general safety focused environment practiced throughout the industry. But people...
In my 30+ years in the industry, I've seen people back into spinning propellers, crushed between tow vehicles and aircraft, and sucked into jet engines. I've also seen wing walkers practicing their dance moves thinking that they're entertaining the passengers instead of diligently doing their job.
The ramp is a very dangerous environment. The fact that there haven't been more tragic accidents speaks to the general safety focused environment practiced throughout the industry. But people get complaisant, and accidents continue to happen. Bottom line: Everyone has to follow the rules and maintain situational awareness at all times.
I don't watch accident or crime-in-progress videos but the description you gave, Ben, is enough to know that someone was grossly violating not just airport and airline procedures but likely could be held criminally liable if there is serious injury or death to the Delta employee.
And, Ben, it is time for you to start cleaning out personal attacks on users - such as below. They are unacceptable. If VFTW has upped its game on moderation, you can too.
@Tim: What's this I hear about a personal attack. I don't see no personal attack.
Seriously just become someone mentions your name in a comment does not make it a personal attack. The fact you chose to take it as a personal attack says a lot about you:-(
first, it is as inappropriate to divert from discussing the tragedy that occurred as it disgusting that anyone is allowed to "pre-post" what someone else would write, esp. when the inference is that they would want more tragedies.
Such behavior should be stopped.
Other sites have cracked down on that behavior, readers consistently have noted that they don't want it, and it is quite incredible that you or anyone else thinks it is...
first, it is as inappropriate to divert from discussing the tragedy that occurred as it disgusting that anyone is allowed to "pre-post" what someone else would write, esp. when the inference is that they would want more tragedies.
Such behavior should be stopped.
Other sites have cracked down on that behavior, readers consistently have noted that they don't want it, and it is quite incredible that you or anyone else thinks it is even remotely acceptable.
As I said the first time - none of which the replies addressed - there are accidents and there are acts of criminal negligence. Delta will do what it needs to do both to the victim - whom we all clearly want to see restored to health - but also to the perpetrator. Public prosecutors might take a different approach if they believe there was negligence which resulted in sustained harm or death.
You seem to be the only one diverting attention from this tragic story, Tim. Perhaps just spend five minutes away from your computer and not combing the comments section to take the slightest offense to nothing.
Tim Dunn
Makes obvious sycophantic comments to every Delta related post.
Gets upset when people call him out for it, in advance.
You can change the name of the company. It just happens to be a Delta employee. Dotard.
I wish I had not watched it (you did post a warning so my own fault). I hope the person is OK.
Very upsetting. I hope this person receives excellent medical care and full pay and all the time they need to recover.
Will keep a good thought for this person.
This is horrible, really hope the guy who was hit comes around. That said, waiting for Tim Dunn to put a positive spin on this and say how it was a brilliant effort on Delta's part and how more airlines should be doing the same.