Arm Was Severed By The Prop, Authorities Say

A woman had her arm severed by the propeller of an airplane at Key West International Airport (KEYW) Saturday when she tried to help her husband remove chocks from the airplane.

The Miami Herald reports that the injured woman is Rebecca Lynn Gray, 45 of Fort Myers, FL. She and her husband, 46-year-old Walter Gray, were preparing to depart Key West Saturday in a Cessna 172 they had rented in Fort Myers.  

According to the Monroe County Sheriff's Department, which is investigating the incident, when Gray went to taxi to the runway at KEYW, the airplane wouldn't move. With the engine running, he got out of the airplane to determine if the chocks were still in place. He told his wife to stay in the plane, but she got out. He then cautioned her not to walk to the front of the plane, but she reportedly reached for the chock and the propeller contacted her arm, severing it.

Mrs. Gray was taken to Lower Keys Medical Center and later airlifted to a Miami-area hospital, where she was listed in stable condition.

The MCSD said Mrs. Gray's foot was also injured in the incident, but the FHP would only confirm the injury to her arm.

(Image from file. Not incident airplane)

FMI: Source report