CHARLOTTE, N.C. — "My brother was in town from New York, and I wanted to show him what the scooter craze was all about," Sam Perkins told NBC Charlotte.
They were planning to ride them a couple of blocks to dinner in South End almost one month ago, but shortly after Sam unlocked the scooter and hopped on, he came tumbling down.
"There was a section of the sidewalk where it looks like they cut out for utility work," Perkins explained. "I hit that straight on. There were no markings, and I flew over, landed on my shoulder and my hand."
NBC Charlotte met Sam at the spot of the accident on Bland Street, near South Boulevard Wednesday. The spot of gravel is still there, with no cones or flags.
WCNC reached out to the city about the accident and persisting safety concerns. The City of Charlotte, along with CDOT, responded with the following statement:
"We do not have permit for that sidewalk utility cut, so we are investigating to find out who made the cut. Also, we will make sure the sidewalk is made safely passable until we can make a permanent repair.
The correct process would look like this:
A utility would obtain a permit prior to making a cut. After the subterranean work is complete, they would backfill with compacted stone to make it safely passable and then make the permanent repair within 30-days."
As for Sam, he doesn't know the extent of his injuries. He hasn't filed any complaints yet, but hopes his story will push the city and construction companies to be better neighbors.
"It's really dangerous," Perkins said. "It's not even just a scooter issue. If you are a jogger, biker -- this is such a big gap, it's really a safety issue for anyone."
NBC Charlotte found other sections of gravel filled where the sidewalk has been cutout throughout South End, so take caution when maneuvering through the area.