A woman in a wheelchair criticized a well-known nightclub, claiming she was forced to leave by the manager due to being labeled a ‘fire risk’. Maddie Haining, 18, stated she was removed from Club Tropicana on Canal Street in Manchester during the early hours of Saturday, an incident she described as degrading.
In an Instagram video, Maddie, known as maddieiswheelycool, documented her encounter with the club staff. She mentioned that one staff member was respectful, but the manager was described as unpleasant and impolite. She expressed her frustration on camera, stating she was being ousted from the bar solely because of her wheelchair.
According to Maddie, the manager warned her about potential fines for breaching fire regulations and threatened to forward them to her. Maddie cited the Equality Act 2010, which prohibits denying access to facilities based on wheelchair use, to the bar staff. Despite this, she claimed the staff insisted she had to leave and that the manager was consistently rude to her.
The altercation occurred even though the door staff had no issues with Maddie’s wheelchair when she entered the club with friends at 2 am. Recalling the incident, Maddie recounted how security initially helped her inside, but later, the manager insisted she leave, citing safety concerns without clear explanations.
After the incident, Maddie contacted two directors from the bar’s operating company, who assured her of an internal investigation regarding the manager’s behavior. The Mirror reached out to the bar owners for comment, and a spokesperson mentioned they were investigating the matter internally and refrained from further comments at the moment.