"If Only They Had Helped for 5 Minutes"... Kang Wonrae, Paralyzed from the Waist Down, Leaves Self-Service Gas Station After Refusal

"I wish they had given just five minutes of help
thinking of those who must live with inconvenience for life..."

Kang Wonrae (55), former member of Clon, expressed his frustration after being refused help at a self-service gas station.

On May 1, Kang Wonrae shared on his Instagram, "I am paralyzed from the waist down, but thanks to assistive devices for people with disabilities, I am able to drive myself without much inconvenience. However, when I go to a self-service gas station, I can't reach the fuel cap while in my wheelchair, so I have to ask the gas station staff for help."

Kang Wonrae, former member of Clon. Kang Wonrae Instagram

He continued, "For nearly 20 years, I have received help and was able to refuel without any problems, but today, for the first time, I was refused assistance," adding, "It wouldn't have taken much time to help me." He went on, "Even just thinking about people who have to live with inconvenience for their entire lives, it would have been nice to get five minutes of help. I wish self-service gas stations offered delivery services as well."

Kang Wonrae explained, "(The staff) didn't just say, 'We absolutely can't help you because it's a self-service station.' Instead, they strongly emphasized, 'Because it is self-service, if the car owner doesn't do it themselves, the staff cannot take responsibility if something goes wrong while helping to refuel.'" He added, "So I said, 'I'll take responsibility, so could you please help me? I can't reach it.' But they replied, 'If you want us to help, it would be safer to go to a full-service station,' so I just turned my car around and left." At the end of his post, he expressed his displeasure by using hashtags such as 'self-service gas station', 'we can't take responsibility', 'go to a station with attendants', 'disappointment', and 'if you can't smile, don't run a business.'

Kang Wonrae debuted in 1996 as part of Clon with Koo Junyeop, achieving sensational popularity with songs such as "Kungdari Shabara" and "Choryeon." In 2000, he was paralyzed from the waist down after a traffic accident in which his motorcycle collided with a car making an illegal U-turn. He later married his longtime girlfriend, dancer Kim Song, and welcomed their son Kang Seon through in vitro fertilization.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.