Story By: Ana Lacasa, Sub Editor: Joseph Golder, Agency: Central European News 

This 25-year-old female factory worker has died after her hair was caught in a machine causing an accident that left her “completely mutilated”.

The tragic accident took place on 26th December at the Santa Patricia agribusiness plant in Cabuyal in the municipality of Huaral in the western Peruvian department of Lima.

The victim, identified as Morelia Chavez Llashag, was reportedly working without proper safety gear at the factory which sorts farm produce such as mandarins and avocados.

Her hair became entangled in a fruit processing machine and she was dragged inside, according to reports.

Local media did not specify the young woman’s injuries, however one report said she was “completely mutilated”.

Her distraught family has called on the local authorities to fully investigate the matter and find out who is responsible for any alleged negligence.

According to local media, factory workers have claimed that the company do not offer proper training to staff and fail to follow basic security measures.

The Peruvian Union of Education Workers (Sindicato Unitario de Trabajadores en la Educacion del Peru) told local media: “She is added to the list of victims of dangerous employment by a government that is expanding a slave-driving agribusiness regime.”

A spokesperson for a Lima water and sewerage union bemoaned: “Workers’ lives in Peru are not worth a thing.”

The local authorities have confirmed that they are investigating the incident.

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