DOJ Investigating SeaWorld, Busch Gardens Firm After Ban on Some Wheeled Walkers

The Trump Administration’s Department of Justice, not known for its support of minorities and disabled people, announced it is investigating the company that runs SeaWorld Orlando and Busch Gardens Tampa Bay for potential violations of the Americans with Disabilities Act.

The probe came two weeks after United Parks & Resorts, a global theme park firm, banned the use of some wheeled walkers with seats, due to safety and liability issues and apparent misuse of the devices in its parks.

The DOJ said in a press release last week that it had received complaints from people with disabilities about the ban on the walkers with seats, also known as “rollator walkers.”

“Complainants allege that they cannot access the parks without their rollators and the only alternative the parks offer would require them to use mobility aids that are inappropriate for their individual disabilities and to incur additional charges, among other allegations,” the release noted.

United Parks has not fully responded to the investigation news, but a spokesperson told the Orlando Sentinel that guests could use the parks’ own rollators or wheelchairs at no extra cost.

It’s not certain what triggered the ban on the wheeled and seated walkers, but the spokesperson said that safety incidents with guests’ rollators had raised concerns. Some guests may have used the walkers inappropriately—riding on them like wheelchairs—while being pushed by another person, something that the walkers are not designed for and which is not recommended by the manufacturers, Fox35 TV news reported.

United Parks & Resorts is a publicly traded entertainment company (PRKS on the New York Stock Exchange). Marc Swanson is the CEO, according to the firm’s investor relations information.