Curti
02-05-2003, 11:16pm
Internet pals come to stricken woman's aid
Chat group members in U.S. summon help for Burnaby woman who suffers stroke online
Brian Morton
Vancouver Sun, with file from Dan Rowe
Wednesday, February 05, 2003
A 55-year-old Burnaby woman is lucky to be alive after members of her Internet chat group in the U.S. realized she was in serious physical distress and contacted RCMP to help her.
"They are my friends for life," said Darlene Laurie, who suffered a stroke while "chatting" with friends on the Internet.
"That room is not a chat room," she said Tuesday. "It's a room of friends. Thank you very much."
At 10:30 p.m. January 28 the wheelchair-bound Laurie was on an Internet games chat room with about 50 other people across North America.
Kay Duran of Kennewick, Wash., near the Oregon border, was one of the other people online. She said she knew her friend was in poor health.
"All of a sudden she quit talking and everybody got worried about her."
During the chat, Laurie felt like she was going to black out and typed in 9-1-1 on her computer, although she can't remember doing so. Then she fell out of her wheelchair. Others on the chat line saw the distress call and attempted to find out where she was located.
Because of disguised call signs, only a couple of people had her address and phone number. Duran collected the information with the help of her roommate, who was also online.
"When everybody panicked, I just kind of got offline and got on the phone ... to get a hold of some emergency personnel in Canada," she said.
Duran was able to phone Burnaby RCMP at 11:45 p.m and alert them.
Police went to Laurie's residence in the 300-block of Ellesmere Avenue, where they found her semi-conscious on the floor of her condo. She was taken to Burnaby Hospital, where she was treated for the stroke.
If members of her chat group hadn't contacted RCMP, Laurie would have remained on the floor, with possibly fatal consequences.
"Yes, I could have been in great difficulty," added Laurie, who is recovering at home. "I'd had a headache and weird vision. Then I saw black and got dizzy. I guess I hit a key and then I was gone. I can't walk. I stood up to try and get to the bed, but I passed out."
Laurie said she has been in the chat group for a year and a half and knows some of the people quite well.
"There's two people I'm especially close to, one of whom initiated getting the help. Some of us are very ill and we all support each other. We're not just screen names. I really appreciate what that [chat] room did for me."
Duran and the other people in the chat room had 90 nervous minutes waiting for news of their friends.
"I went into my roommate's room and watched the computer to see if anything happened. Somebody else got a hold of her neighbour or mother and they found out they were taking her to the hospital," she said.
On Tuesday Duran spoke with Laurie on the phone for the first time.
"She just thanked me for what I did. I said, 'Well, I was just doing what I hoped somebody would do for me some day," Duran said.
The two have tentative plans to meet.
RCMP Constable Phil Reid said members of Laurie's chat group deserve a pat on the back. "I commend the people on the other end making the extreme effort to believe something was really wrong, trying to track her down, and getting ahold of us within two hours. Certainly, it could have been a lot worse.
"These are just nice people. They did the right thing. They helped out a friend who they had never met."
© Copyright 2003 Vancouver Sun
http://www.canada.com/search/story.aspx?id=8e819b17-fe17-40ef-b775-b7a4b2121115
Chat group members in U.S. summon help for Burnaby woman who suffers stroke online
Brian Morton
Vancouver Sun, with file from Dan Rowe
Wednesday, February 05, 2003
A 55-year-old Burnaby woman is lucky to be alive after members of her Internet chat group in the U.S. realized she was in serious physical distress and contacted RCMP to help her.
"They are my friends for life," said Darlene Laurie, who suffered a stroke while "chatting" with friends on the Internet.
"That room is not a chat room," she said Tuesday. "It's a room of friends. Thank you very much."
At 10:30 p.m. January 28 the wheelchair-bound Laurie was on an Internet games chat room with about 50 other people across North America.
Kay Duran of Kennewick, Wash., near the Oregon border, was one of the other people online. She said she knew her friend was in poor health.
"All of a sudden she quit talking and everybody got worried about her."
During the chat, Laurie felt like she was going to black out and typed in 9-1-1 on her computer, although she can't remember doing so. Then she fell out of her wheelchair. Others on the chat line saw the distress call and attempted to find out where she was located.
Because of disguised call signs, only a couple of people had her address and phone number. Duran collected the information with the help of her roommate, who was also online.
"When everybody panicked, I just kind of got offline and got on the phone ... to get a hold of some emergency personnel in Canada," she said.
Duran was able to phone Burnaby RCMP at 11:45 p.m and alert them.
Police went to Laurie's residence in the 300-block of Ellesmere Avenue, where they found her semi-conscious on the floor of her condo. She was taken to Burnaby Hospital, where she was treated for the stroke.
If members of her chat group hadn't contacted RCMP, Laurie would have remained on the floor, with possibly fatal consequences.
"Yes, I could have been in great difficulty," added Laurie, who is recovering at home. "I'd had a headache and weird vision. Then I saw black and got dizzy. I guess I hit a key and then I was gone. I can't walk. I stood up to try and get to the bed, but I passed out."
Laurie said she has been in the chat group for a year and a half and knows some of the people quite well.
"There's two people I'm especially close to, one of whom initiated getting the help. Some of us are very ill and we all support each other. We're not just screen names. I really appreciate what that [chat] room did for me."
Duran and the other people in the chat room had 90 nervous minutes waiting for news of their friends.
"I went into my roommate's room and watched the computer to see if anything happened. Somebody else got a hold of her neighbour or mother and they found out they were taking her to the hospital," she said.
On Tuesday Duran spoke with Laurie on the phone for the first time.
"She just thanked me for what I did. I said, 'Well, I was just doing what I hoped somebody would do for me some day," Duran said.
The two have tentative plans to meet.
RCMP Constable Phil Reid said members of Laurie's chat group deserve a pat on the back. "I commend the people on the other end making the extreme effort to believe something was really wrong, trying to track her down, and getting ahold of us within two hours. Certainly, it could have been a lot worse.
"These are just nice people. They did the right thing. They helped out a friend who they had never met."
© Copyright 2003 Vancouver Sun
http://www.canada.com/search/story.aspx?id=8e819b17-fe17-40ef-b775-b7a4b2121115