Truemors
is reporting from
Member
NP Rank:
NP Rank:
allergic baby's food, water & medicine thrown by TSA
Share:
by madhavijay | June 17, 2007 at 05:22 pm
829 views | 17 Recommendations | 4 comments
TSA video counters 'sippy cup' claim story on Yahoo today brought back memory of a painful incident in my case.
My toddler is highly allergic to most foods, & i personally cook & make everything for her.
On my last international journey from USA to the east which is approx 18 hrs flight hrs+ waiting time of 4/5 hrs depending on other factors, i had packed food for my toddler & medicines,
the TSA threw away her food(home made jam & cooked pulses & rices),they also threw her water away saying she cannot take except sealed bottled water , i was in tears telling them that this was home boiled water & it was v imp for her to take that. I had proof of medical letters & certificates photos showing her condition but they refused to accept. I had kept an ounce of traditional herbal medicine for emergency, they said they have to throw that too..
thats when i was shocked....& scared .HOW WILL I TRAVEL alone for so long with a sick child without food & medicines. i WAS BEGGING the TSA agent to atleast allow me to take that ounce of medicine, i said i would drink it right there to show them it was a safe product to travel with. after making me wait for several agonising minutes while all the passer bys were giving me those uncomfortable looks, i compromised my position begged him again drank half an ounce of the medicine, when another TSA agent showed pity & let me go.
I told him you threw her food water & other important stuff, if u cannot allow me to take this medicine i cannot travel.....
while writing this mail my thoughts are going faster than my hand, & i still feel traumatised & pained when i relive those moments.
I feel sympathy for the mother in your article, still not basing my judgement on how she cooperated or not.
hopefully things will improve for the better of humanity
My baby Items thrown.
Boiled water from sippy cups, jam,cooked pulses, curd rice, flavoured curd(sealed product), 3 syrup based medicines.
Sealed Tylenol was the only medicine allowed in my case.
What is NowPublic?
NowPublic lets people work together to cover news events around the world.
Most RecentMost Recommended Comments (4)
at 04:12 on June 18th, 2007
madhavijay, that really stinks -- my condolences.
at 09:09 on June 18th, 2007
madhavijay, thank you for posting this story. The lack of common sense in a lot of these rules just blows my mind...I understand the need for protectiveness, but if you have medical papers and other items confirming your child's health then they should be taken into account. They should invest some of that Iraq money into getting machines that can test substances on-site.
at 10:11 on June 18th, 2007
I agree with kaitlin-- it's not the rules per se, but that they're enforced without a degree of common sense.
at 15:42 on June 18th, 2007
All I have to say is that you have to take these cases case by case. Yes you can blame the tsa officers on some occasions but you can also blame some of these passengers that bring along more baggage then needed as their carry-on. I travel frequently and all I carry is my wallet,keys,cell phone, and any meds I need. In the cases of these mothers, I understand they have child needs but they just just carry what they need for the trip. As for the TSA I believe they need more training for their officers. I saw the video of the "sippy mom" as she is being called, and I noticed how the TSA officers were horse playing before this incedent. If they want to be respected and their authority taken seriously they should act more professional. Most of the agents I come across do not have manners and always have bad attitudes toward passengers. Another problem I have is how these officers are hired, I mean no disrespect to these agents but I know 3 Iraqi War Veterans, which by the way have been trying to get a job with the agency for 6 months now and have applied 3 times. I also know 1 person that currently is employed by the TSA and he barely graduated High School. He was called in a month after he submitted his online request. So I believe these officers are picked from the by their needs and PROFIT!