re: Montgomery AL - airport employee sucked into engine in fatal accident

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According to the report, upon landing, the captain began the process of shutting down the engines before receiving a warning that the plane's front cargo door was open. The co-pilot alerted workers on the ground to let them know the engines were still on. One section of the report reads: 'Immediately thereafter, he saw a warning light illuminate and the airplane shook violently followed by the immediate automatic shutdown of the number 1 engine. 'Unsure of what had occurred, he extinguished the emergency lights and shut off both batteries before leaving the flight deck to investigate'. The report says there is video that shows Edwards walking in front of the first engine on the left of the plane. It reads: 'She was subsequently pulled off her feet and into the operating engine.' One of Edwards' colleagues told investigators he saw her 'almost fall over from the engine's exhaust while he attempted to alert her to stay back and wait for the engines to be shut down'.

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Another said he attempted to warn her that the engine was still on, and as he was in the process of doing this he heard a 'bang'. The ground crew said they had two meetings about safety prior to the plane landing and all members knew the engines would remain on until ground power was connected as the plane does not have auxiliary power. One member of the crew said it was 'discussed that the airplane should not be approached'. The report says the surveillance video shows a violation of protocol in which Edwards did not keep at a safe distance until the airplane's rotating beacon light shut off. It reads: 'Throughout the course of the accident, the airplane’s upper rotating beacon light appeared to be illuminated'. The report cites the American Eagle Ground Operations Manual which tells workers not approach the front of a running jet engine and to keep a safe distance of at least 15 feet, known as the 'ingestion zone.' The manual says: 'Jet engines spin with powerful speed and are extremely dangerous until spooled down. The area in front of the engine is called the ingestion zone. The ingestion zone for all aircraft types is 15 feet. You must never enter the ingestion zone until the engine has spooled down.' It's not clear when the full and final report will be published.

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