‘‘How could anyone do this? They’ve taken my independence away. They may as well take my legs.’’
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Dot Harris, 81, lives alone in a Housing NSW unit block in Wollongong. Mostly deaf, with deteriorating eyesight, a bad back and sore legs, Dot depends on the kindness of a neighbour and her red electric mobility scooter to get around.
Or, at least, she used to, until her scooter was stolen and trashed by vandals in June. She now has to choose between shutting herself inside at home, or burning through money to pay for taxis to the supermarket and the bank and the City Diggers club to have dinner a few nights a week.
A concerned cafe owner contacted the Mercury after seeing Dot shuffle into her shop with her walking frame.
Dot said the scooter was stolen from her apartment building’s shared garage on June 10.
‘‘I park it downstairs because that’s the only place I can charge it up,’’ she said.
She spent nearly a week distraught over the theft, before a woman called to say she had found the scooter, badly damaged and dirty. The woman claimed a young boy had come to her house, attempting to sell the scooter for $1000, before fleeing after she questioned the scooter’s origins.
‘‘She brought it back, but it’s badly damaged. It’s got bits ripped off, one of the arms is damaged. The seat has been forced down, I can’t get it back up,’’ Dot said through tears.
The scooter’s electronics do not work, and the ignition will not function.
Various parts have been loosened, bent, broken or snapped off.
It looks as if it has been taken for a joyride through dirt and mud.
As an elderly woman living alone, Dot does not know how much repairs will cost, if the scooter can even be fixed, or if she will have to buy a new scooter.
‘‘I have to use taxis all the time which is very expensive,’’ she said.
‘‘I’ve had blood tests and doctor’s appointments, I’ve spent $80 on taxis this week already.
‘‘I can’t do much on a walker. I can’t walk around to get my shopping.
‘‘It’s very hard on my back and legs, and my foot doesn’t work properly.’’
To make matters worse, renovations at Wollongong’s ANZ Bank mean Dot has to ask friends for a lift to Figtree so she can do her banking.
She said her apartment block had no outdoor security lighting and the garage door was always left unlocked, and that groups of youths often lurked around the building.
Her scooter has previously been vandalised while parked in the garage, with assorted parts broken and stolen.
‘‘I’m just worried they might do this to someone else who needs a chair like mine,’’ Dot said.
‘‘It’s bad enough when someone takes anything they shouldn’t but when they take something like this, that’s taking away my independence.’’
A Family and Community Services spokesman said the department was ‘‘sympathetic’’ to Ms Harris’ needs after the incident.
‘‘FACS were not made aware of the incident involving the stolen scooter, as no report was made to the local office,’’ the spokesman said.
‘‘The [block of units] is secured with lockable doors and an intercom system.
‘‘FACS conducted an external inspection of the complex on July 7, 2015, and found that there was no issue with the locks to the garage doors, but there was a door stop in place of both doors leaving the garage unlocked and accessible to anyone.
‘‘An officer from FACS has been scheduled to visit the property and assess the security currently in place.
‘‘Following this assessment, any identified improvements will be implemented as soon as possible.’’
