New York's Bravest mocked a crippled 72-year-old Bronx woman in distress - then broke her shoulder with brutish treatment, she charges in a suit against the city.
The partially paralyzed senior citizen claims that when she got stuck in her wheelchair in March, the firefighters sent to rescue her laughed openly as one of them roughly yanked at her arm and shattered her fragile shoulder.
"They were laughing at me, making fun of me because I was trapped in the chair," Ziola Garcia said. "I was insulted. I asked them, 'What's the show?' "
"It was a big joke," said her lawyer, Anthony Iadevaia. He said it's unlikely his client will ever fully heal because her shoulder bone fragmented.
Garcia's "self-powered" wheelchair, which elevates 3 1/2 feet to allow her to reach objects, got stuck in the "up" position at her Finley Avenue home on the day of the incident.
She's paralyzed on the left side as a result of a stroke and was unable to get down. Her ex-husband called 911.
Several firefighters arrived but, instead of helping, they burst out laughing like schoolyard bullies at the sight of 200-pound Garcia stuck high in the chair, Iadevaia said.
Garcia, who does not speak English, charges a Spanish-speaking firefighter ignored her request that they be careful with her paralyzed left side before he callously grabbed her left wrist and yanked with all his might.
"All I remember hearing is the snap of the bone," she said. She was then taken to a hospital.
A spokesman for the Fire Department referred queries to the city Law Department, which said the case will be evaluated.
Republished with permission of The New York Post.
