Woman dies after hair gets caught in wheel of go-kart at her birthday party

Tuesday, February 27, 2024 – A woman has died after her long hair became caught in the wheel of a go-kart at her 33rd birthday party.

Arini Mohamed Adinan’s helmet was thrown off as her vehicle slammed into the tyre barrier, an eyewitness said.

She had been racing against her friends Karmeli, Zeth, and Julie at a track in Bengkong, near Singapore in Indonesia’s Riau Islands, on February 21 – the day before she was to turn 33.

A worker who raced to help her after the crash described how her ‘very long hair’ was stuck in one of the rear wheels.

Arini, from Singapore, was rushed to hospital but was pronounced dead on arrival.

Her friend Zeth told local media she had been unable to brake her own kart after watching the crash.

She said: “I had to force the kart to hit the tyre barrier to stop, but the engine was still running.”

Julie said the group had helped each other put on their helmets, while Karmeli added: “She did wear a hair net.”

The four had been the only people racing on the track at the time, Zeth said.

Arini was buried the next day, on what would have been her 33rd birthday, at a cemetery next to the Pusara Aman Mosque in Singapore.

More than 100 friends and family members attended her funeral.

Zahwani Pandra Arsyad, a local police spokesperson, said: "Witnesses saw the victim in a go-kart with the number 14 driving two laps around the track.

“Her kart hit the barrier on the circuit.”