Tulsa Woman Says Her Mobility Chair Caught Fire On Mother's Day

Power chairs help a lot of people with disabilities, but one could have been deadly for a Tulsa woman whose chair caught fire while she was sitting in it. Virginia Chambers wasn't hurt, but she says she was pretty shaken up this Mother's Day. She says she's sharing her story because she's worried this could happen to someone else.

"I was shaking so hard I couldn't hardly stand it," Virginia Chambers said.

Chambers said she's had problems with her power chair in the past, but nothing prepared her for what she experienced over the weekend.

"I wanted to be a part of Mother's Day, so I tried to get on it where I could get in the yard and the next thing I know it's on fire."

She says her son-in-law noticed smoke coming from the chair. Luckily he was able to get her out in time, and quickly pulled the chair out in the yard.

The Tulsa Fire Department arrived a short time later.

"If I'd have been somebody that was by myself and it had caught on fire, I would have hate to think what would have happened, said Tulsan Virginia Chambers.

The damage appears to be mostly on the front where the plastic melted away. Now it sits in pieces on her front porch.

"Took a Mother's Day and really ruined it fast," she said.

Chambers says she bought the chair from Mobility Plus here in Tulsa. Mobility Plus says they don't manufacture power chairs, they just sell them and do repairs.

They released this statement saying:

"We have sold and serviced thousands of these products, and this is the first complaint of this nature we have ever received... we are working closely with the manufacturer to investigate the incident and take the proper course of action."

Mobility Plus says they are working with Chambers to resolve the issue, but Chambers says she doesn't plan to use the company again.

"I shouldn't have to worry about something like this, companies should be good for what they say they're good for," she said.

Chambers says her insurance will let her choose another provider for her next power chair, but she says she doesn't know when that will be.

"I'd don't know how long I'm going to be without a chair; that's my freedom," she said.

Pride Mobility is the manufacturer of the chair, and they chose not to comment. While there are other cases of fires related to mobility chairs, we could find only one linked to Pride Mobility.

There are also no recalls on the model Chambers was using.