Based on a True Story
The day after “Three Kings Day” at approximately 3 pm, 7 January 1997, Olga, Cheri, Ashley and I went shopping at K-mart. It’s located in Plaza Atlantico, Arecibo, P.R. We made a left turn, after entering the store walking towards the back, where electronics and the plumbing was located.
I was looking for the plumbing department. I needed a part for the kitchen sink. While heading towards the back, the girls stopped several times to browse the Cds and electronic stereos on special. I left them behind and continued to search for the plumbing section.
I entered a few isles of house-wares searching and realizing I was lost. I passed the automotive department, looking over the shelves trying to find hardware on my tiptoes.
After not finding anything yet, I joined the girls, then we stopped breathing. I tried to breath again and again, when I began coughing over and over. I felt as if I swallowed a cup of sand down my throat and wind pipe. I was terrified and going through a nightmare, I have never experienced before.
While I was choking, I noticed Olga and the girls going through the same thing. Cheri 9 years old and Ashley 6 years old began vomiting, when all of the sudden a small garbage can flew by us. Employees from K-mart, from their uniform on, began yelling at us, to get out of the area numerous times. I didn’t understand and a older man, another K-mart employee with uniform on, approached me yellig to run away from the area.
I saw everything in slow motion, as if we were in a movie, terrorized, floating like outer space. At one moment, I saw Olga crashing into some products knocking them on to the floor, holding the shelves from falling to the ground. The girls kept choking and vomiting. I remember, I grabbed them trying to run but useless and no strengh walking away since we were so weak. After a long distance, Olga waved to us and we followed her towards the bathroom.
We were at the bathroom and pressed the button of the water fountain but there was no water. We ran to the stalls and tried to clean up the best we could. Next to the bathroom, the security office was located and Olga went to notify the manager begging for help. The air smelled like chlorine or something like that. I was beginning to feel a touch better however, I felt lost still in outer space.
Olga found the manager and security interrogating 2 thieves caught stealing some Cds or something.. Olga explained everything why we needed medical help, especially Cheri who was in worst condition than the rest of us. The manager told us to stay in the office while he investigated our incident.
We needed water, so I walked to the cafeteria which took me a lifetime. It was located over the other side of the store from the manager’s office. I retrieved a cup and returned. The manager hadn’t arrived yet. We waited and waited. We were feeling really lousy and no medical attention, no ambulance, nothing just waiting for the manager. I thought our incident took precedence over the crooks, but the manager and security officer continued dealing both things at the same time, unbelievable.
Finally, the manager arrived and told us that a few car batteries had exploded and sulfuric acid spread all over the place. He told us the hospital was next to the plaza, over a 5 minute walk. He started to fill some paperwork, and send us to the hospital. He said over and over again, that K-mart is not accepting responsibility while doing the paperwork. We were more interested in our health, especially stopping all the suffering.
We told him we needed emergency medical attention, especially Cheri, but it seemed the crooks were more important, than all of us. We begged him to finish up with the paper. I looked for a handicapped chair for Cheri and we rushed to the hospital which was a long way from K-mart.
We walked to the Arecibo Medical Center and related the incident to the front window. Do you believe this! Walked to, no ambulance that took us anywhere, and it really was over a 5 minute walk. At the hospital, they told us to enter the emergency room immediately and do paperwork afterwards.
From all of the comotion of pushing the handicapped chair, no ambulance, walking to the hospital for over 5 minutes, I worsened. The doctor jumped out of his chair and ran towards us. He provided medical emergency to me first and began oxygen procedures. The emergency room got hectic from our incident. We were being taken care of first priority, the way it should have been from the beginning of the incident at K-mart.
After several hours we were released with a prescription, and slowly walked back to our car. I returned to K-mart to speak to the manager and see about the prescription. I had to convince myself to see him since the incident stayed in my brain, flashbacks. I didn’t want to go through hell again, though my body was shaking, trembling. I got the medication and left relieved the hell was over, or I thought it was over.
It took us a long time and arrive back home. We couldn’t see well, our minds felt lost, spacy and our breathing got very difficult. The rest of the week was the beginning of a nightmare for the rest of our lives, hell. We began returning to emergency rooms over and over again for Olga, Cheri, Ashley and especially me.
Not only the incident gave me additional health problems, it worsened my service connected back injury, which I had for years. Doctors, Doctors and more Doctors. Test after test, injection after injection, breathing medications, pain medication, nightmares, financial loss, waking up at night screaming, job loss, forgetting where you are, where you’re going. Watching and hearing your children scream at night from their terrifying nightmares.
Your life totally changed from one moment to another and nobody to go to, other than doctors and more doctors. Your senior citizen parents doing the best they can to help. Waking up everyday with the same terrors praying because the only thing your life is, is doctors, medications and more nightmares. Something always happens for a reason. What’s the reason for this?
Signed by the disabled writer.
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