The mother of a 17-year-old girl whose hair was pulled out during a freak accident in woodshop class Wednesday is leveling accusations at Deltona High School officials, who she claims showed a “lapse of judgment” by not calling 911, the Daytona Beach News-Journal reports.
Senior Kayla Marie Carrera did not have her hair pulled back as she was supposed to, which is how her hair became caught in a drill press machine. A large portion was pulled out nearly to her scalp, resulting in bruising and swelling.
Kayla’s mother, Lissette Carrera, wants to know why her daughter was allowed on the machine if she was not in compliance with classroom protocol.
“My thing is if she wasn’t following the rules in the classroom, she should have never been allowed on that machine in the first place because the teacher himself is putting her at danger,” Carrera told News 13, adding, “He’s the adult, he supervises, she is the student. He should have told her, put your hair back before you get on the machine, these are the rules of the classroom, you must follow them.”
Kayla was permitted to walk to her next class, as no one made a move to dial 911 or summon a nurse to the shop classroom. She eventually called her grandmother, Fannie Seda, who picked her up and took her to Florida Hospital Fish Memorial, where she was prescribed painkillers and released.
According to News 13, Nancy Holland Wait, a spokeswoman for Volusia County Schools, says a nurse from Deltona High School examined the girl’s injuries and determined it was not necessary to call 911.
But Lissette Carrera, who is also a kindergarten teacher in the district, maintains she would have responded differently.
“At all cost speak to an adult, call 911 first and then if they deem that it’s okay, that she should be discharged as she was, then that’s okay. But I would rather err to the side of caution,” Carrera told News 13. “Someone there should have made the judgment call to call 911. She shouldn’t have called for help herself.”
WKMG reports the school district opened an investigation Thursday morning to determine whether the shop teacher took appropriate action and had appropriate supervision in the classroom at the time of the accident.
Carrera also told the station she met with both the teacher and principal to discuss what happened, and that the school is considering implementing safety changes and possibly adding another teacher to supervise.
According to the Daytona Beach News-Journal, Carrera says Kayla, who feels traumatized and embarrassed, will not be returning to the class.