Nurse Nicole Harper claims she was forced to urinate in a cup on a recent United Airlines flight after she was not allowed to use the bathrooms because of turbulence
A Kansas City nurse says she was forced to urinate in a cup at her seat on a United Airlines flight after a flight attendant wouldn't let her use the restroom.
Mother-of-two Nicole Harper was on a United flight from Houston to Kansas City last month when she tried to use the restroom, but a flight attendant sent her back to her seat because the seatbelt sign was illuminated.
"After explaining that I have an overactive bladder and would either need to use the restroom or pee in a cup, I was handed a cup by flight attendants," Harper said in a Facebook post about the incident.
Harper, who was wearing a dress, said she squatted over her seat and filled two cups with urine while her husband sat next to her.
She posted her account on Facebook on Saturday morning, saying she couldn't get anyone at United Airlines to acknowledge her complaint, the Daily Mail reports
"United Airlines refuses to take my call, now I can't sleep and just keep thinking about how wrong this is," Harper wrote.
Harper said her experience happened the same day that 69-year-old David Dao was injured while being forced off a United flight that was overbooked. That incident happened April 9.
Upon looking up United flight 6056, which Harper says she was on according to Kansas City TV station KSHB, it appears she actually traveled on April 10. She said the incident happened 30 minutes into her flight.
Harper said that employees had started their drink service, but due to turbulence the seatbelt sign had been turned on, according to KCTV.
She wrote on Facebook of the incident: "I was handed a cup by flight attendants. Bad enough? No, crew then escorted me to the restroom (now it's safe to get out of my seat), shaming me down the aisle while other passengers overlooked.
''The flight attendants treated me like I had committed a crime, stating they would be filing a report, calling in the hazmat team to clean the entire row (let me mention there was no mess involved) and told me I would need to talk with the pilot after the flight!
"I guess they would have preferred me to pee in the seat? After all they were the ones that gave me the cups knowing what I was planning to do with it.
"You would think peeing in a cup on an airplane in front my family and strangers, would be the worst part of this story. But the way I was treated by the flight attendants afterwards was worse.
''They were absolutely horrible to use the rest of the flight! And to top it all off, once on our final descent ... a gentlemen got up from first class (yes the seat belt sign was on, and the plane was flipping tilted) walked right by a smiling flight attendant and entered the bathroom."
Harper said that her efforts to reach United's customer service department were unsuccessful.
"As an emergency room nurse I completely understand having a bad day on the job and having to deal with undesirable bodily fluids," Harper wrote.
"What I don't understand is ZERO customer service. If I treated a patient this poorly I would surely have consequences."
After Harper's Facebook post went viral, United Airlines released a statement about April's incident.
The airline said: "Customer safety is always our first priority. Initial reports from the Mesa Airlines flight attendants indicate that Ms Harper attempted to visit the lavatory on final descent and was instructed to remain seated with the seat belt fastened per FAA regulations.
Nicole Harper tried to use the restroom on United flight 6056. Photo / KSHB
"The situation as described by Harper and our employees is upsetting for all involved.
"We have reached out to Ms Harper and our flying partner Mesa Airlines to better understand what occurred."
Harper's claims are the latest in a string of incidents the have underscored the frustrations of flying.
Following the Dao incident, United came under fire after a three-foot rabbit died following a flight from London to Chicago.
More recently, a passenger who thought she was traveling from Newark, New Jersey, was accidentally allowed to board a flight to California.
