Harlem woman has a rough fall in her faulty wheelchair

Wheelchair Incident Strands Woman on Icy Sidewalk

Susan King encountered a challenging situation when her wheelchair became stuck on an icy patch.

The 66-year-old was navigating a Harlem sidewalk when her electric wheelchair hit a heap of snow and slush outside an M&T Bank. She struggled to maintain her balance.

“I won’t back down from foolishness,” King remarked. “And that just threw me off.”

The mother of two found herself helplessly tumbling onto the icy ground.

Left in the cold, King relied on a passerby to summon assistance.

Swiftly, police and firefighters arrived at the scene, lifted her from the pavement, wrapped her in blankets, and made sure her wheelchair was upright. They even waited with her until an Uber could take her home.

“They were incredibly kind,” King recalled. “They were patient. They didn’t rush me. They stayed by my side.”

King lives with systemic lupus erythematosus, severe knee issues, asthma, vein problems, and ongoing pain following spinal surgery. Yet, she considers her wheelchair her most significant hazard.

“This chair endangers my life every day,” she said.

She shares numerous complaints, but claims Medicare’s provider, National Seating and Mobility, often offers excuses instead of real solutions.

Though repairs are promised, the complicated paperwork leaves her frustrated, and the issues remain unresolved. The chair has let her down repeatedly; she has fallen multiple times, even breaking four toes in one incident.

King estimates that the total cost of the chair and its necessary repairs has piled up to around $75,000. While she isn’t responsible for covering those expenses, she fears “the chair could endanger her life.”

And yes, she’s quite upset.

Since receiving the chair in June, she has been making calls, only to be met with the same lack of answers or solutions.

Now, she plans to contact her bank, Medicare, and National Seating and Mobility again, sending them photos of her latest predicament. Filing a lawsuit isn’t off the table.