Disability access mat under cloud after foot injury
A woman who injured her foot on a mat that allows disabled people to access the beach is calling for its removal.
Sunnynook resident Emma Tolmie, 50, said the access mat at Auckland’s Takapuna Beach ‘‘made her disabled’’ after she fell through it on January 6.
But the mat was cordoned off at the time of the incident because a storm had dislodged some of the sand supporting it and advocates are calling Tolmie’s comments ableist.
Tolmie, who is the deputy principal of Richmond Road School, said she was exiting the beach via the mat when the incident occurred.
‘‘My foot just gave way and crashed on to the concrete underneath,’’ Tolmie said.
‘‘I was screaming and crying because I was in so much excruciating pain.’’
Tolmie spent nine days in hospital, where she underwent surgery to repair her foot. She is now back at home but will need crutches to walk for three months.
‘‘That mat put me in hospital and has made me disabled. It is not made well enough and should be designed better before it is used,’’ she said.
‘‘I have missed my holiday with my family and am unable to work for months.’’
The mat was installed by YES Disability Resource Centre in December, making Takapuna Beach the first and only beach in Auckland to provide access for people with disabilities.
YES Disability Resource Centre chief executive officer Sonia Thursby said the sand supporting the beach access mat had become unsettled in a storm at the time of the incident.
‘‘But it was cordoned off, and when something is cordoned off with cones and tape people should know it is not secure,’’ she said.
Thursby said Tolmie’s calls to remove the mat were ableist.
‘‘It is not OK to want it gone after the first thing goes wrong, and that kind of messaging will stop any other council from wanting to try to make beaches accessible,’’ she said.
‘‘We are sorry she has hurt herself but that is no reason to deny access to the beach to disabled people.’’
Auckland Council spokesman
Mace Ward said he might consider moving the mat.
‘‘It would be a shame to have to remove it altogether at such an early stage in the trial,’’ he said.
‘‘This incident will however play a part in deciding whether the trial will be extended.’’
Ward said the nature of placing equipment in a dynamic environment meant that from time to time these things would happen. ‘‘YES Disability’s contractors relaid the mat after the incident and continue to visit the site regularly, reposition the mat if required and carry out any necessary beach maintenance.
Thursby said the mat had been criticised since its introduction,
with some locals describing it as an ‘‘eyesore’’.
‘‘But I spoke to a woman who has a young daughter with severe cerebral palsy and she was overjoyed that her daughter can now enjoy the beach like everyone else,’’ she said.
The 20-metre mat was made in France from recycled plastic.
Local donors covered the $30,000 project costs and $10,000 maintenance fees.