HOLLYWOOD, Fla. – A South Florida firefighter who has a special wheelchair to help him get around has been living a nightmare since the chair was lost by an airline during a family trip to Europe.
After weeks of trying to get answers from the Iberia Airlines, Derek Avilez and his family turned to Local 10 News.
Hours later, the chair was found and finally delivered, but the story doesn’t end there.
“The power of social media and the news your story aired, I got a message on (Instagram) from Iberia saying they are pleased to tell me they found my wheelchair and missing luggage,” said Avilez.
The chair was delivered to his home, but since it’s unknown where the chair was or how it was handled for the past three weeks, it needs a full inspection.
“They did say they were going to compensate us for sending the chair to New Hampshire to be inspected by the manufacturer,” said Avilez.
He says he is not able to use it until that is done.
“I know I will be real happy when I can sit in it with confidence that it is not going to tip over,” said Avilez.
The iBOT was a life-changing donation for Avilez two years ago.
It has the ability to lift him to eye-level, take him to the beach, and curbs are no problem, making travel more enjoyable.
In 2010, Avilez, a Hollywood firefighter, saw his life change after a skimboarding accident at the beach caused him to be dependent on a wheelchair.
But last month, when Avilez and his family traveled to Europe for a cruise, his $45,000 chair and all of their luggage were lost, forcing his son to push him around in an uncomfortable manual chair, which proved difficult.
When he wasn’t getting anywhere with the airline company, Avilez turned to Local 10 News and social media.
He is hoping for a full refund of their trip, which he says was ruined by their lost luggage and the lost chair.
“This is not just me, there are a ton of people in wheelchairs that are afraid to travel because of the horror stories of airlines mishandling our legs,” he said.
The family is hoping for a reimbursement after they saved for three years to take this trip, and they are still waiting for one piece of luggage to arrive.