A careless baggage handler at LAX was captured tossing guitars on the floor while unloading a luggage cart.
Witness Nick Ruiz was astonished as he filmed the airport employee on March 16, recklessly unloading more than a dozen delicate instruments onto the concrete.
‘The whole situation felt wrong,’ the 21-year-old from Connecticut told creatorzine.com.
Footage showed the guitars toppling over one another as the employee wearing a bright orange high-visibility uniform and hoodie negligently dropped the instruments. Another employee was seen nearby.
Ruiz’s shock was matched by many others after the footage was uploaded to TikTok, garnering more than 4 million views and over 365,000 likes.
He was headed to his terminal when he spotted the baggage handler, and it was instinctive to start recording.
‘The closest plane was the JFK to LAX B777 that had just arrived,’ Ruiz said.
Ruiz, a college student, was flying home from Los Angeles after a short vacation and ended up on that same plane.
Ruiz gave the owners of the instruments well wishes: ‘I hope your guitars are ok.’
However, users online were more concerned with consequences being pressed against the careless employee.
One user wrote: ‘That should be a fireable offense. That’s just egregious.’
Another speculated on the price of the instruments: ‘I’d lose my mf mind. That’s easily $3,000 of equipment, by the way.’
A third added: ‘Give this job to someone who actually wants it and will take real care of people’s personal items.’
Most airlines have specific policies for instruments that are set in their ‘Contract of Carriage,’ according to the Department of Transportation (DOT).
‘Some airlines disclaim liability altogether for loss of or damage to musical instruments on domestic trips,’ stated the DOT.
‘On international trips, airlines are usually prohibited by treaty from disclaiming liability for baggage that they actually carry.’
LAX is widely considered California’s busiest airport servicing more than 5 million passengers a month, according to Visit California.
The Daily Mail has reached out to Los Angeles International Airport for comment.
