Great-gran thrown from wheelchair after hitting a pothole
A DISABLED great-grandma has been left in agony after being catapulted from her wheelchair when it got caught in a pothole covered by leaves.
Ivy Olomo – who has previously suffered a stroke – suffered a broken finger, bruising to her face and cuts to her knee after she was thrown from her chair on Monday afternoon.
The 75-year-old was being pushed along by her 77-year-old husband Samuel on Mayfield Road in Moss Side when she fell from the chair, landing face first on the pavement.
Ivy, who has had five bypass operations, said: “I was going down the road then suddenly I was on the floor.
“I bashed my head and broke my finger. I didn’t know what was happening, I was in terrible pain. These two young men got out of their car and came to help me, to lift me back up, as my husband couldn’t get me up.
“We went to the doctors, who said to go straight to A&E.”
She was taken to Manchester Royal Infirmary, where she had to stay overnight for treatment. Ivy, who has a defibrillator in her chest in case her heart stops beating, is still in agonising pain following the accident.
“I’m feeling terrible. It’s disgusting that this could happen. It could be a child falling out of a buggy,” she said.
Her daughter Amanda, who also lives in Moss Side, wants answers from the council after her mum’s accident.
She said: “I have asked for a claim form to report it. The council need to take responsibility. People are paying council tax. She is in a lot of pain. It is all down the stroke side. She was on morphine. She could have had a bleed to the brain.”
A Manchester City Council spokesman added: “Following a reported incident caused by a defect on Mayfield Road, our team have inspected the road and will take any remedial action required to ensure that there is no danger to the public.
“We regularly inspect all of the city’s roads, with each road inspected at least once every six months and all serious defects reported for repair.
“We filled almost 15,000 potholes in 2016, but we know there is more to do to tackle the issue, which is why we recently announced a new £100m highways investment programme, to significantly improve the standard of Manchester roads and footpaths over the next five years.”