Mechanic Crushed In Bowling Pin Machine

A repairman was crushed in a bowling pin machine on Sunday afternoon.

The incident happened at Rock’It Lanes in Panama City, Florida. William James Martens was attempting to fix the machine that resets the pins when he became trapped.

An employee at the bowling alley explained that a family was bowling at the location on Sunday afternoon. When the pin machine got stuck, they continued to press the reset button. It was then that they noticed that the repairman had been crushed in the bowling pin machine.

The family notified staff when they saw Martens’ arm sticking out of the machine. An employee discovered he was trapped when she went behind the lanes to investigate the situation. Unfortunately, the worker was unable to free Martens from the machine.

It’s believed that the 40-year-old repairman had failed to turn off the machine before he tried to repair it. This caused it to crush him when the reset button was pressed.

Once the powered was turned off, three employees were able to manually lift the bowling pin machine off the man. Authorities explained that Martens’ heart had stopped by the time they arrived on the scene.

The owner of Rock’It Lanes has refused to the comment on the man who was crushed in the bowling pin machine. However, the individual told police that turning off the power is standard policy before repair work can begin.

Another employee explained that the mechanic must have misunderstood his instructions. Instead of working on the malfunctioning lane, he ended up working on one that was currently in use.

William James Martens is currently listed in critical condition as a result of the injuries he received at the bowling alley on Sunday afternoon. He was taken to Bay Medical-Sacred Heart for treatment.

What do you think about the mechanic who was crushed in a bowling pin machine?

[Image via Wikimedia Commons]