Woman Spends a Week Wedged Between Toilet & Door

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BRISBANE, Australia - An Australian woman was rescued after spending a week wedged between her toilet and the bathroom door, an official said Tuesday.

The 67-year-old woman, suffering from dehydration, was taken to a hospital after firefighters in the eastern city of Ipswich ended her ordeal Sunday by removing the bathroom door from its hinges, Queensland state government spokesman Chantelle Rule said. The woman, who is diabetic, was not seriously ill, Rule said.

The woman, who has not been named, fell during the early hours of July 19 and somehow became trapped with her feet stuck on either side of the toilet bowl and her body wedged against the inward-opening door, Rule said.

Neighbour Michael Hibberd said he heard her cries for help as he hung his washing in his backyard Sunday morning. He could not open the door to her house and called police.

Hibberd said it was a reminder that people should look out for their neighbours.

"Just make a note of their movements and whatnot," he told Australian Broadcasting Corp. radio. "If anything becomes a bit off - like, you haven't heard or seen them for a week or so - maybe just knock on the door and see if they're OK."
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Australian woman rescued after a week spent trapped between her toilet, bathroom door

Glad to hear that there are no serious injuries, but it really makes me wonder who you can get caught between a door and toilet. :hmm: I don't think that would be possible in any of my bathrooms unless you were really wide, which could have been the case.
 
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Note to self: always carry cell phone in pocket.
 
Or one of those necklaces that you push to call for help from some company.
 
Bottesini said:
Or one of those necklaces that you push to call for help from some company.
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Believe it's Medic Alert....."Help, I've Fallen and I Can't Get Up"! (Maybe bar patrons should have one too whenever they drink too much and fall flat on their arses!)

This is really embarrassing!
 
>> this is why living alone is never a good idea. I feel sorry that she went through that.
 
This reminds me of another thread I came across a while back ago about how a woman was sitting on the toilet for months and the boyfriend (I think?) was charged for negligence.

Anyway, This is an unfortunate situation that shouldn't have had to happen. At least she got the help but it came with costs.
 
Joile, I remember that and it was awful.
 
But this was an elderly lady living by herself. I think a person should be able to live independently as possible if they so choose, so while I think sallylou was joking with her cell phone comment - she could be on the right path. If elderly people feel embarrassed to wear the MedicAlert tag, then offer them a cell phone and tell them to carry this in their pocket always unless sleeping or showering. If they feel like they need to make a call, they can do so, and just remind them to charge it nightly. I'm willing to bet that human services have already installed safety devices in her home to prevent another episode from happening - the first being that the door is removed and a handrail installed.
 
I was only half joking Dixie. Something could happen to any of us while we're alone. Other family members may be out. I always take my cell phone when I take my kids to the park. Once I had to call 911 when my kid flew off a swing. Long story, but he was fine.

If an older person has a cordless phone, she could even carry that. She'd have to make sure to keep it charged. That might be better because 911 has the location when you call from a cordless land line.
 
I forgot about cordless phones, but that would work just as well if not better since it is connected to a land line that has a definite physical address to go along with it when it is routed to 911.
 
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