A woman has been crushed to death between sections of a drawbridge over the Chelsea River in Boston.
Aura Garcia, a 46-year-old mother-of-two, was crossing the bridge on the way to a medical appointment when the operator, unaware she was there, began raising it for a boat to pass.
She grabbed hold of one of the sides of the bridge and the operator immediately lowered it when he heard her scream, but she became trapped in between the plates.
Witness Waldina Garcia told the Boston Globe: “I couldn’t see her, but I could hear her.”
“She was screaming and screaming and screaming.”
Barriers come down when the bridge is raised
Ms Garcia was pronounced dead at the scene.
Investigators have said her death on the Meridian Street Bridge, which connects Chelsea and East Boston, was an accident.
An official said it was not clear whether she began crossing the bridge after warning lights and alarms were activated.
Police said the distraught bridge operator was taken to hospital for evaluation.
Dot Joyce, a spokeswoman for the Mayor’s office, told the Boston Globe he had been placed on unpaid leave until the investigation was complete.
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