A woman from North Carolina was found dead, entwined in a baggage conveyor system at O’Hare International Airport in Chicago, Illinois in the early hours of August 8, 2024. The 57-year-old woman’s death, which happened in Terminal 5, was ruled a suicide by local authorities following an investigation, with the cause of death being hanging and asphyxiation.
The deceased, identified as Virginia Christine Vinton from Waxhaw, North Carolina, was found by an airport worker around 7:45 a.m., according to official reports. An alert of a person stuck in machinery brought the Chicago Fire Department to the scene. Larry Langford, a representative for the department, confirmed that Vinton was discovered entangled in the conveyor belt system utilized for luggage transportation.
Security camera footage revealed Vinton entering the restricted baggage handling area around 2:27 a.m. The exact circumstances leading to her entrapment in the machinery remain uncertain, as the footage failed to capture the moment she became entangled in the conveyor system. The area where Vinton was discovered is typically off-limits to the public, only accessible to employees.
An individual familiar with the incident noted that Vinton had made multiple attempts to gain access to the employee side of Terminal 5 before successfully entering through a door intended for luggage transport.
The Occupational Health & Safety Administration (OSHA) stated that they are not participating in the investigation, as Vinton was neither an airport nor an airline employee. Delta Air Lines, which runs operations from Terminal 5, also verified that Vinton had no affiliation with the airline.
As the investigation progresses, authorities are encouraging anyone who may have noticed unusual activity in Terminal 5 during the early hours of Thursday or who has additional information to step forward.