Accessibility reviewer's first time in Irish sea in over 14 years at Clonea Beach

For the first time in over 14 years, accessibility reviewer Samantha Ryan got to go for a dip in the Irish sea thanks to the new amphibious beach wheelchairs at Clonea Beach.

“Being in the water is the most freeing feeling. I forget I’m paralysed when I’m swimming," Samantha told the News and Star after her recent experience along Dungarvan's coast.

“I was delighted when I seen Clonea Beach got a beach wheelchair. Not only does the beach wheelchair allow me to get into the water, it allowed me to just sit beside my family on the beach.

"My everyday wheelchair wouldn’t get through the sand, so if we ever went to the beach the start of the sand was the furthest I could go."

After experiencing a horrific car crash and becoming paralysed in 2011, Samantha's love for swimming was put on hold until earlier this summer when she had the opportunity to use a wheelchair accessible boat in Tenerife and got to experience the feeling of the ocean again.

She said: “I’ve always loved swimming. It was one of the things I felt was taken away from me when I became paralysed due to places not being accessible. I haven't been in the sea since becoming paralysed just because I’ve never had a way of safely getting in and out of the water.” 

The new amphibious wheelchairs available at Clonea were brought into use at the beach just two months ago, through an initiative funded by Waterford City and County Council and delivered in partnership with CoMotion Mobility Solutions, who supplied the adult and child sized wheelchairs available at Clonea.

The chairs are located by the toilets and the lifeguard seats, Samantha said on her accessibility awareness page Wheel_Reviews on Instagram, and easy to access through the STEED app.

"I scanned a QR code and downloaded an app called 'STEED', entered my details and then it unlocked the shed its (the beach wheelchair) in. When returning I just confirmed it was put back," she said.

These chairs are specially designed to allow wheelchair users access across the sand and into the sea to fully experience the beach environment, although Samantha did have some trouble along the sand, it wasn't enough to stop her from having a swim in the sea.

“I was a bit nervous about using the chair in Clonea, mainly because I hadn’t before and I thought people would stare but it was fine," she said, adding: "We even had a stranger on the beach help us push the chair through part of the sand as it was a bit tough to pull.” 

After suffering a spinal cord injury 15 years ago, Samantha has struggled to find accessibility information online, a not uncommon experience for those with mobility issues, and so Samantha began to post information online for other people in a similar situation 6 years ago.

“I’ve always loved travelling around Ireland but after becoming paralysed I always found it so hard to get information online about accessibility and even sometimes when I found accessibility information, it wasn’t always correct,” Samantha said.

“Since I set up the page the thing I’ve found the most interesting is how many people find accessibility interesting, and how many people have messaged me to say that they’ve started to notice accessible features in places because of something I’ve shared.” 

Samantha’s recent post at Clonea Beach not only attracted our attention here at the Waterford News and Star, but the attention of people across the country, friends and strangers alike.

“I shared the video online to show other wheelchair users that it was in Clonea and I was so surprised to see the amount that messaged me, that didn’t know it was there.” 

“I’ve even had close friends who have said to me I’ve opened their eyes on living in a wheelchair and showed them things they never thought of until they seen it on my page,” Samantha said.

Samantha’s page, having come from a frustration with the accessibility standard in public places nationwide, has become a great source of information for many.

“I want to show people making a place accessible for wheelchair users benefits everyone," Samantha told the News and Star, whether it's elderly people or mothers with prams using ramps, or people with luggage needing a lift.

“What people don’t realise is at some stage in most people’s life they will need places to be accessible, when you get older or after an operation," she said, "so hopefully my page gets people to make their businesses more accessible because anyone can become a member of the disabled community at any stage in their life".