CLARKSVILLE, TN (WKRN) – A woman who lost her arm in a workplace incident has filed a civil lawsuit against the Hankook Tire manufacturing plant.
The suit was filed to the Circuit Court of Montgomery County on Friday. The plaintiff had been working at the plant – though not as a Hankook employee – for about five months when the incident occurred on Dec. 13, 2025.
On that day, the woman had been assigned to clean a MESNAC Inner Liner Machine and was “exercising reasonable care for her own safety,” according to the lawsuit. The woman said she was standing near the machine when it suddenly turned it on. Her right hand became trapped in the machine’s belt, leading to an amputation and other injuries.
The complaint alleges that MESNAC contractors on site failed to follow lockout-tagout safety protocols prior to the incident and failed to quickly turn off the machinery once the emergency occurred.
Additionally, the plaintiff accuses the plant of negligence, alleging the company had prior knowledge of previous accidents that resulted in amputations at the same facility.
In a statement, Hankook Tire told News 2 that it worked closely with Tennessee OSHA, and that the incident did not involve one of their employees.
“Hankook Tire worked closely with Tennessee OSHA (TOSHA) at the time of the incident, which did not involve a Hankook Tire employee. TOSHA concluded Hankook Tire is not responsible. Beyond that, it is Hankook Tire’s policy not to comment on pending litigation,” the Hankook statement said.
The plaintiff seeks a jury trial and judgment awarding monetary relief for medical expenses and permanent disability, requesting up to $30 million in combined compensatory and punitive damages.
MESNAC has not responded to News 2’s request for comment on the lawsuit.
WKRN News 2 is a Clarksville Now news partner.
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