A Texas woman’s quick-thinking during a medical emergency led her to save the life of a friend from 5,000 miles away.
Aidan Jackson, a 17-year-old gamer from Widnes, England, suffered from a sudden seizure while playing video games with his friend from Texas, 20-year-old Dia Lathora.
Dia had just put her headset back on when she heard an unusual sound coming from the other line.
“I could hear him seizing and breathing really hard and it sounds like he was choking and crying,” she said.
She started to get worried and asked Aidan what was going on and if everything was okay. Dia didn’t get a response, and that’s when she realized that something was very wrong. She knew Aidan’s address but didn’t have his phone number, so she dialed the U.K. police instead.
In a call obtained by BBC News, Dia can be heard telling Cheshire police: “I’m calling from the U.S. I’m currently on a call with my friend, he had a seizure and he’s not responding anymore.”
Dia said she was “shaking” during the call, yet she still managed to inform the authorities about her friend’s urgent situation.
“When he didn’t respond I instantly started to look up the emergency number for the EU. When that didn’t work I just had to hope the non-emergency would work, it had an option for talking to a real person…and I can’t tell you how quickly I clicked that button,” Dia recalled.
At the time, Aidan was upstairs in his room while his parents, Caroline and Steve Jackson, were watching TV. The couple had no idea that there was a medical emergency happening in their home until two police cars arrived at their front door.
Ms. Jackson, 48, recalled the moment they were alerted by the police:
“We were at home watching TV and Aidan was upstairs in his room. The next thing we noticed was two police cars outside with flashing lights. I assumed they were in the area for another reason and then they ran up to the front door. They said there was an unresponsive male at the address. We said we hadn’t called anyone and they said a call had come from America. I immediately went to check on Aidan and found him extremely disorientated.”
Aidan last suffered from a seizure in May 2019 and is waiting for his next appointment following the latest attack. His parents couldn’t be more grateful for Dia’s quick-thinking during the incident.
“We are extremely thankful for what Dia did and shocked that we could be downstairs and not know anything was happening,” she said. “I’ve spoken to her and expressed our thanks – she’s just glad she could help.”
According to Ms. Jackson, Aidan is feeling “a lot better” now. They’re hoping that everything goes well once he has his appointment.
Aidan also feels grateful to Dia for what she did for him – even when they are literally 5,000 miles away from each other.
“I thank her every day,” he said.
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