An Important News Story

[Robbie Fowler]

I had an ECV incident in Magic Kingdom a couple of weeks ago which I can laugh about now but at the time it was painful and embarassing.

I was looking at some tshirts in the middle of the shop with my back to the aisle when the next thing a new I was pushed into the display and my right foot and ankle were hurting! I steadied myself and before I could turn round it happened again. I winced and let out a few expletives and turned round and it was a gentleman who had let a child sit on his knee and the child was messing with the controls and had hit reverse instead of forward twice.

My ankle was really sore and bleeding but when I saw the man was in his wheelchair I felt sooooo bad for my bad language and even worse everyone was looking at me for shouting at a disabled man, even tho I didnt realise he was disabled until I turned around. In the end we laughed about it and I hobbled off!

This is in no way slagging off disabled people merely a recount of a one-off incident.

 

[Talking Hands]

If a person in an ECV ran ito you, you have every right to say a few bad words. If they are in a Disney ECV and a child is opeerating it you have the right to point this out to a castmember since it is clearly stated in the contract when you rent it that it is for the use of one person only ( no riders) and that person must be 18 or over. Don't feel guilty about it. Handicapped or not this person was in the wrong.
I don't allow anyone to control my chair but me not even my dh.

 

[thumperjr9]

Let's face it there are inconsiderate ECV users as well as people who are inconsiderate towards ECV users. I had an incident in a grocery store. I was standing in the produce section (picking out potatoes) my DS-4 was standing right behind me next to the shopping cart. I turn around to make sure he was still standing there(he does sometimes wander) When I noticed a woman backing up in her ECV She was about 6-7 feet away and she just kept coming right towards my DS never looking back. I quickly moved him out of her way and she just missed him bumping the cart instead. Then without saying a word continued on her way. A short time later I saw her backing up again without looking and almost hit someone else.

On the flip side I have seen people block aisles and not give ECV users the room they need to get by. I can imagine how frustrating it is to manuever those things particularly in a crowded situation.

It would be great if everyone could use a little more courtesy!!

 

[inkkognito]

Thumper, I agree with you totally. This has been such an interesting and thought-provoking thread, but it all boils down to COMMON COURTESY.
I don't think that being in a wheelchair or ECV gives you any right to take precedence over people on foot. But people should certainly be courteous and also take into account that mobility assistance devices, whether they are motorized or not, need more room and pose some challenges to operate. Once hubby and I were eating in Ghiardelli's ice cream shop in Downtown Disney. A person in a wheelchair approached, and hubby could see that unoccupied chairs at our table and the empty table next to us were in the way, so he moved them. The man in the wheelchair thanked him profusely, which surprised him, as he didn't think he did anything that deserved thanks. I'd hate to think that there are people who would expect someone to have to maneuver around in a narrow obstacle course.
Incidents like the child running the ECV controls are unacceptable, but I've seen plenty of unacceptable behavior by pedestrians on foot too.
On one of our Disney cruises, I was in a wheelchair for the last two days due to a leg injury that occurred on the ship. It really gave me a new perspective on how challenging it can be to do something simple like just waiting for an elevator...crowds of people on foot will rudely rush past a disabled person who is waiting (this didn't happen to me, but I've noticed it at other times). If we could all treat others with the same courtesy that we'd like ourselves, the world would be a much happier place.
Barb
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