The Transportation Security Administration in a Texas airport detained a child in a wheelchair who has a bone disease. She, and her mother, made their flight, but the mother is understandably displeased about what occurred. Traveling by plane in December can be stressful. This situation made things much more stressful for the child and her mother.
Shelbi Wasler is twelve years old. She was traveling with her mother, Tammy Daniels. They were at the Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport on their way to Tampa, Florida. The purpose of the trip wasn’t as a Christmas celebration or a vacation. The two were traveling so that Shelbi could receive treatment in Florida for her genetic bone disorder.
The twelve year old has Brittle Bone Disease. It can also be called Osteogenesis Imperfecta. It is a rare disorder that affects connective tissue. The disorder is characterized by extremely fragile bones that can break or fracture very easily. Hence, the name Brittle Bone Disease”. It is a genetic disorder.
When Shelbi and her mother were at the Dallas-Fort Worth International airport, Shelbi was randomly selected for a security screening by the Transportation Security Administration (TSA). The TSA official swabbed Shelbi’s hands. To the surprise of the girl, and her mother, Shelbi tested positive to traces of explosives.
How could this have happened? They aren’t sure. Shelbi, who uses a wheelchair to get around, had this to say:
It could have come off fertilizer because we have chickens. I could have run through something from them. It could have just come off the ground because I roll through everything. I was just scared because I didn’t know what they were going to do.
Some wheelchairs are motorized. Shelbi’s is not. She gets around by rolling the wheels with her hands. Whatever touches the wheels ends up also touching her hands. Shelbi was held by the TSA for nearly and hour. Fortunately, she and her mother did end up being able to make their flight. Shelbi’s mother, Tammy Daniels, had this to say about what happened:
I am by no means undermining our safety in the air. After 9/11, by no means am I doing that. But, when it comes to children, common sense is not in a textbook.
The TSA released a statement which said:
We are sensitive to the concerns of passengers who were not satisfied with their screening experience and we invite those individuals to provide feedback to TSA through a variety of channels. We work to balance those concerns with the very real threat that our adversaries will attempt to use explosives to carry out attacks on planes.
Image by Benny (I am empty) on Flickr