A female tourist’s holiday turned into an unexpected ordeal after a malfunctioning drone crashed into her head and became hopelessly tangled in her hair, forcing emergency responders to spend hours trying to free her.
The incident occurred on May 29 at the popular Yunhe Rice Terraces scenic area in Lishui, Zhejiang province, China.
The tourist, a social media influencer from Hebei known online as Rochel, later shared her experience in a video that quickly attracted attention online.
According to Rochel, she was enjoying the sightseeing trip when another visitor allegedly lost control of a drone, causing it to plunge from the sky and strike her on the head.
While she suffered only minor scalp injuries, the drone’s rotating propellers became tightly entangled in her long hair, leaving the aircraft firmly attached to her head.
Emergency responders, including local firefighters, scenic area rescue personnel and police officers, rushed to the scene to assist.
However, despite spending nearly three hours attempting to carefully untangle the drone, rescuers were unable to separate the aircraft from Rochel’s hair.
With no other option available, firefighters ultimately resorted to cutting away large sections of her hair to free her from the drone.
Rochel estimated that more than 300 strands of hair had to be cut during the rescue operation.
Although grateful to emergency personnel for helping her, she expressed frustration over what she described as inadequate drone management at the tourist attraction.
She questioned why drones were allowed to operate in the area without clearer warning signs or stricter safety measures to protect visitors.
Rochel also claimed that the scenic site’s management initially attempted to avoid responsibility following the incident.
The drone operator has reportedly apologised and indicated a willingness to cooperate in resolving the matter.
Rochel is now seeking compensation from the parties involved and has called on authorities and tourist destinations to strengthen regulations governing drone use to prevent similar accidents in the future.
The unusual incident has sparked discussion online about drone safety and the risks posed by recreational aircraft operating near crowded public attractions.
