A woman who was traveling through Atlanta’s Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport in Atlanta, Georgia set her toddler down to print a boarding pass for her Spirit Airlines flight was in for the shock of a lifetime. The woman, Edith Vega, briefly looked down and before she knew it her son, Lorenzo, was gone.
The toddler crawled onto the luggage conveyer belt and was unable to get off.
Instead, the child rode the conveyer belt all the way to the TSA baggage room. If there is any silver lining in the incident, it is that the toddler did not suffer any severe injuries. According to reports, he suffered a severely swollen and bruised right hand, according to NBC News.
“When I tried to go after him, it was the end of the machine,” Edith told WSB-TV 2 in Atlanta. “He just went a long ride away. I couldn’t even catch up.
“I just went blank. I was, like, ‘Hey, my son…’ I wanted to jump in and try to go get him but they didn’t allow me. I was just freaking out and I’m, like, ‘Oh my goodness, I hope he’s OK. I hope he’s just enjoying the ride.’”
The child rode the conveyer belt for approximately five minutes through the airport’s restricted area before finally being noticed in the TSA baggage room.
Once he was in the room, TSA agents quickly moved to stop the belt and get the child to safety.
Check out the shocking video below:
Spirit has since issued a statement on the incident.
“Spirit Airlines is aware of an incident at Hartsfield-Jackson International in which an unattended child passed by a section of our ticket counter that was not staffed or open at the time,” the airline said in a statement. “The child was able to access a back baggage area via a bag belt and sustained some injuries. We are currently working with TSA and airport officials to ensure all protocol was followed. We wish the child the best in their recovery.”