A man died last week after being pulled into an MRI machine by a “large metallic chain” police said he was wearing around his neck – highlighting the importance of checking for any metallic objects before going near the powerful magnets used in the medical imaging machines.

A 61-year-old man died after being pulled into an active MRI machine while wearing a heavy metal chain at a clinic in New York.

WESTBURY, N.Y. (AP) — A man who was pulled into an MRI machine in New York after he walked into the room wearing a large weight-training chain around his neck has died, according to police and his wife, who told a local television outlet that he waved goodbye before his body went limp.