As I understand it, she was working alone with a sizable lathe, and apparently not being too careful with the long hair.
Some of the comments on the articles I read stated that this was totally preventable, and that no student should ever be working on that powerful of a machine alone and unsupervised. I tend to agree. A competent and trained supervisor would not let someone use a machine with their hair or clothing hanging down where it could get caught.
As I read it, had someone been there to turn off the machine, she would have lived, since she actually suffocated, which takes a long time.
Very sad situation. Hard to believe the school allowed such a thing.
All labs should be staffed at all times by an experienced teacher.
There is not excuse for this.
Edit: I had access to all of the labs at school, and they all contained large and dangerous equipment, from hydraulic presses, pumps, lathes, powered woodworking equipment, electrical gear and motors, etc. Never once did I find a lab door unlocked when lab was not in session. During lab sessions, a qualified lab instructor was in the room and aware of what was going on with the machines at all times.
I remember well the rule in the labs, that if you turned on a machine without the lab instructor first checking the setup, it was an automatic "F", and you were immediately expelled from lab for the semester. At the time, I thought the rule was a bit harsh, but now I understand.
There is no room for error with equipment like this, and we never had a problem.
