A heartbreaking incident took place in Springvale, South East Melbourne, Australia, when an elderly man lost his life in an unimaginable way.
He was trapped and mangled in a car wash’s machinery.
The man had driven into the car wash and mistakenly exited his vehicle to input an access code. As he attempted to re-enter his car, the wash cycle had already begun, and a gantry jammed his car door, trapping him inside the mechanism.
Country Fire Authority firefighters reached the scene in quick time but took 16 minutes to free the man. Paramedics managed to revive him, but he later succumbed to asphyxia due to the extended period of oxygen deprivation to his brain.
Chevron, an international oil company, has been charged in connection with the man’s death. The company’s attorneys appeared before the Melbourne Magistrates’ Court on Monday, April 17, facing accusations of four breaches of the Occupational Health and Safety Act.
Pietrina Di Noto, a customer who witnessed the horrifying event, testified in court about the man’s desperate attempt to get back into his car as the machine began to move. He only managed to get one foot inside before the car wash trapped him.
WorkSafe Victoria alleged that Chevron failed to take necessary measures to eliminate risks. The company neglected to post warning signs instructing drivers not to leave their vehicles during the wash cycle and failed to implement safety features such as anti-collision bars or systems to detect potential impacts between machinery and obstacles in the wash bay.
According to court documents, Chevron could have eliminated the risk by installing boom gates that permitted entry to the wash bay only after a valid access code was entered.
