Adrienne Jones-McAllister still relives the terrifying moment that changed her life forever. On July 16, at Nassau Open MRI in Westbury, New York, what was meant to be a routine knee scan turned into a nightmare.
Her husband, 61-year-old Kevin McAllister, was suddenly and violently pulled into the MRI machine by its powerful magnetic force. Adrienne, who was right there, described the horrifying scene to News 12 Long Island:
“He went limp in my arms. That moment is seared into my mind and won’t let go.”
Investigators revealed that Kevin had unknowingly entered the MRI room wearing a heavy metal chain around his neck—a 20-pound piece he regularly wore for weight training. The chain’s metal was instantly drawn to the machine’s magnet, triggering a catastrophic medical emergency.
“The victim’s large metallic chain caused him to be pulled into the MRI machine, which led to a severe medical episode,” Nassau County Police said in a statement.
Kevin suffered multiple heart attacks from the violent incident and, despite emergency medical efforts, tragically passed away two days later.
Adrienne now faces an unimaginable loss, grappling with the suddenness of the tragedy and sharing her story as a painful reminder of the dangers posed by MRI machines and metal objects.
Adrienne recalled the horrifying moments after her scan ended. She asked a technician to bring her husband into the MRI room to help her up. Despite strict safety protocols requiring all metal to be removed before entering the scanning area, Kevin was allowed inside still wearing his heavy chain.
“In that instant, the machine spun him around, yanked him in, and he slammed into the MRI,” Adrienne said. “I literally saw the machine snatch him.”
She and the technician struggled desperately to free him, but the magnetic force was relentless. “I was screaming, ‘Turn off the machine! Call 911! Do something! Please, just turn it off!’”
MRI machines use extremely powerful magnets to capture detailed images of soft tissues and organs. The National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering warns clearly: no metal or electronic objects should enter the MRI suite.
What makes this tragedy even more painful for Adrienne is that this wasn’t their first visit to the facility—staff knew about Kevin’s chain. “They had talked about it before,” she said. “‘Oh, that’s a big chain,’ they acknowledged.”
Since Kevin’s death, Adrienne has been overwhelmed by grief and disbelief.
“I can’t sleep. I barely eat. I still can’t believe it happened. He waved goodbye to me… and then just went limp,” she shared.
The Nassau County Police Department has confirmed an ongoing investigation into the incident.