One morning, four-year-old Sophie woke up and found her mother still in bed. This was extremely unusual for her because her mother always got up before her. Even when Sophie tried to wake her mother, she continued sleeping. Sophie became scared.
Little Sophie began to worry. Her mother not responding, not waking up even with gentle shaking had never happened before.
Dialing emergency servicesLuckily, little Sophie remembered what her mother had taught her for emergencies. In case of an emergency, always dial emergency services. For Sophie in the USA, that meant dialing 911.
But was a sleeping mom an emergency? Sophie wasn't sure. But she was scared, and if she was scared, it must be an emergency. Sophie gathered all her courage, dialed the emergency number, and told the man at the call center, "My mommy has been sleeping all day."
Helping the girlWhen the call center operator heard a little child on the other end of the line, he was shocked. After getting a clear picture of the situation, he sent the police and an ambulance to her address.
Upon arrival, the police realized that accessing the apartment complex was much more difficult than they had expected based on the initial call. It was a newly built building with high-security measures against burglary.
Stunned by what they sawTime seemed to pass extremely slowly for everyone involved. Soon they realized there was only one thing they could do to enter the apartment. But when the police were finally allowed in, they were once again shocked.
What shocked the experienced officers? What had Sophie's mother planned? And would she recover? To explain this story clearly, let's go back to the moment when Sophie couldn't wake her mother.
Sophie loved her motherIn the apartment, only Sophie and her mother Hanna lived. Sophie was only four years old. Sophie's father had never really been part of her life. Once Hanna told him about her pregnancy, he left her.
Hanna had initially been afraid. Would she be able to raise her daughter on her own? But in the end, she didn't miss the father. Sophie was always well taken care of, and Hanna had always done everything for her.
Her favorite time of the dayHer favorite time of the day was the morning. After waking up and having breakfast together as a family, Hanna liked to play music and dance with her daughter in the kitchen.
On a normal day, Hanna would then go to work, and Sophie would accompany her to drop her off at the kindergarten on the way to work. But Sophie immediately realized that today was different.
She wasn't old enough to understandAs soon as Sophie woke up, she noticed that her mother was different. She could hardly open her eyes and wasn't her usual cheerful self. Normally, Hanna would turn off the alarm at the first ring, but since it rang, she hadn't moved a muscle. Instead, Sophie got up to turn it off.
Sophie looked at her mother while standing next to her bed. She must be very tired, Sophie thought. She wasn't old enough to grasp how seriously something could be wrong. Sophie decided to get dressed and go to the living room alone. She hoped her mother would follow her soon, but she never did...
As the minutes went by, Sophie's mother remained asleep in bed. The TV was on, and Sophie watched her typical morning shows. But eventually, she felt hunger rumbling in her stomach. What was keeping her mother from getting up and dancing with her in the kitchen? She then made the decision to check on her again.
Sophie slowly opened the door to her mother's bedroom. "Mom?" she asked with concern. "Mommy, are you awake yet? I'm hungry." But there was no response. She cautiously walked over to the bed and climbed onto it. "Mommy," she said again, shaking her mother's shoulders. She was beginning to worry now.
No responseHer mother didn't react. Sophie's heart started racing. Panic surged through her body, and tears welled up in her eyes. She felt helpless and didn't know what to do. But by now, she knew that something strange was happening and she needed to find help.
Her mother had told her about a number she could call if something wasn't right. She had no idea who this person was, but it didn't matter in that moment. She ran downstairs and grabbed the phone. She had to think very carefully about the number but eventually figured it out.
Emergency numberWith trembling fingers, Sophie dialed 9-1-1. She held the phone to her ear and ran back to her mother. "Don't worry, mommy," she said. "I'm getting you help." "911, what's your emergency?" a man asked her. "Um, my mommy has been sleeping all day," Sophie explained.
The man on the other end seemed surprised by Sophie's voice. "What's your name, darling?" he asked her kindly. "Sophie," Sophie said confidently. "Can you come and help me?" "You said your mommy has been sleeping all day? Is your daddy there, Sophie?" the man asked, not responding to Sophie's question.
Please stay on the lineNo, Sophie said. "It's just my mommy and me. But she hasn't woken up this morning." "Okay, Sophie, you need to stay on the line, okay?" the man at the call center said. "Where is your mommy now?" "She's lying in her room, in bed." "Okay, darling, you're doing really well. Do you know where you live?"
Sophie gave her address and waited. She stayed on the line with the operator the whole time, answering all his questions. He asked her if her mother was injured, if she was breathing, and other important questions. But it took a long time for the ambulance to arrive.
She had to waitBeing only four years old, Sophie didn't have a sense of time. But even she could feel that the ambulance should have been here by now, but she didn't even hear the sirens yet. She was still by her mother's side, speaking soothing words to her without knowing if her mother could hear her or not.
Finally, after what felt like an eternity, Sophie heard the sirens. She ran into the living room to wait for their arrival. She could hear heavy footsteps running up the stairs of her apartment building and stopping outside her door. "Sophie?!" one of the men shouted. "I'm in here!" she replied.
Sophie's heart pounded in her chest. She had never experienced anything like this before. "Sophie, you need to open the door for us," someone called from the other side of the door. But it wasn't as simple as they thought. Sophie was too small to reach the doorknob.
She tried to stand on her tiptoes to reach the handle, but she could only touch it with her fingertips. "I can't reach it," Sophie said. But she didn't want to give up. She knew she had to open the door for these men. Otherwise, they would never be able to help her mother.
If only she could reach itIn the middle of the dining table, there was a small black box. So Sophie climbed up and placed the box in front of the door. She stepped on it and tried again, but she was still too small. There had to be something she could use, she thought. And suddenly it dawned on her.
A chair! Of course, why hadn't she thought of that earlier? Sophie quickly ran back to the table and grabbed the chair. But it was too heavy for her to lift. She tried to pull it towards the door, but the chair got caught on a carpet and started to tilt slowly.
The fallAs the chair started to tilt, Sophie stumbled. She fell face-first onto the floor and couldn't turn around quickly enough to see that the chair was slowly leaning towards her. And before she knew it, the chair fell on her. Sophie screamed as the hard wooden chair trapped her on the ground.
Luckily, she wasn't injured, but she couldn't get up. The chair was too heavy for her to lift. She tried to crawl onto her hands and knees and push the chair up with her back, but she couldn't do it. "Sophie? Are you okay?" the man asked. They could hear the rumbling and Sophie's screams through the door.
Only one way out"I'm stuck," Sophie cried. She felt devastated on the ground. Her mother was still asleep in the room, and all she wanted to do was help her. And now she was trapped under a chair, and there was no way to open the door from underneath... But little did she know that there was still a way for the men to enter her house.
The police knew what to do next. "Don't worry, Sophie! We'll be with you in a few minutes!" one of the officers shouted through the door. But Sophie couldn't help but panic. How could the officers enter her house if the door was locked? But then she heard something.
Get readyShe heard the officers murmuring outside the door, and it sounded like some of them were going back down the stairs. Sophie's little mind immediately feared that they had given up and would leave her, but that couldn't be further from the truth. "Please don't leave me!" she cried.
"We won't leave you, sweetheart!" one officer replied. "We're just getting some supplies from downstairs. Hold on tight and don't be afraid! You'll hear a loud bang in a few seconds." Sophie listened attentively and tried to stay as calm as possible. "Okay, Sophie," a second officer said. "Cover your ears."
Sophie closed her eyes and covered her ears. She had no idea what would happen next, but she trusted the officers. Her heart pounded in her chest, and suddenly the officers began to count down from three to one. "What are they going to do?" wondered Sophie.
"3... 2... 1!" A loud thud echoed through the living room. Sophie felt the floor shake slightly. She was about to uncover her ears when another thud reverberated through the apartment.
Breaking down the doorSophie wanted to see what they were up to, so she cautiously opened one eye. She heard a third thud and could see the door move slightly. Then it dawned on her that they were trying to break down the door with something.
A fourth thud slammed against the door, and she could now see splinters flying off. Sophie quickly shut her eyes again, waiting for everything to be over.
They stoppedBut suddenly, the thuds ceased. Sophie opened her eyes and anxiously realized that the door was still in place. Why had they stopped? And what would happen to her mommy now?
Well, breaking down the door didn't seem to work, so the police had to find another way. Sophie could hear the officers talking to each other, but it didn't sound good.
She had to get outShe heard rumbling noises, and they were clearly trying to get in with a lot of things. But it was taking too long for Sophie. So she decided to take matters into her own hands.
She was done being trapped on the floor under a stupid chair and wanted to help her mom. Despite having red eyes from crying so much, she looked around carefully.
With all her strengthSuddenly, Sophie noticed that the chair's legs were still resting on the carpet it had stumbled on. She reached out her arm to see if she could get her fingers between the chair and the carpet.
To her astonishment, it worked. Sophie took a deep breath because she knew the next part would be very challenging. It was the fear for her mother that gave Sophie the necessary strength.
One final pushSophie had to muster all her strength to push the chair leg away from her. The first attempts failed. The chair didn't budge. But Sophie didn't want to give up.
She figured that the chair just needed to be moved a little so she could crawl out from underneath. So she counted down in her head and then gave the chair a mighty shove.
To Sophie's surprise, the chair began to move, and Sophie was finally able to crawl away. She cheered herself on and was so proud of herself for standing up for herself.
She immediately ran to her mother to tell her what she had accomplished. But in doing so, Sophie was painfully reminded that her mother was still asleep. She received no response.
The police break inAs she stood next to her mother in the bedroom, Sophie suddenly heard a loud bang. She ran into the living room to see if the police could finally come in.
Fortunately, it worked. Sophie ran into the arms of one of the officers and quickly led them to her mother. Within seconds, her apartment was filled with police officers and paramedics.
They were shockedBut none of them seemed happy. The officers looked around with startled faces, and the paramedics put her mother on a stretcher. Sophie didn't understand why everyone seemed in such a hurry to leave this room.
But she would later learn the truth. They took Sophie and her mother to an ambulance and drove to the nearest hospital. Sophie knew that her mother would be well taken care of.
ChaosStill, Sophie wondered why the police were so shocked when they entered her house. She knew she had caused a bit of a mess, but it hadn't been that bad, right?
But Sophie did not know that it wasn't about the mess at all. There was something else in her apartment that explained everything, but Sophie was too young to understand.
A frightening situationSophie had to wait until her mother woke up, and only then would the police explain everything to her as best as possible. At the hospital, they hooked Sophie's mother up to various machines, which seemed frightening to Sophie.
Of course, Sophie had no idea what the machines were for. Fortunately, soon after, Sophie's grandmother arrived. The police had contacted her about the incident and asked her to come.
A familiar faceSophie was relieved to finally see a familiar face after such a terribly hectic day. She ran to her grandmother, nestled in her arms, and told her everything.
Together with her grandmother, Sophie then kept vigil at her mother's bedside. For a while, Hanna didn't seem to be doing any better, but after a few hours, she slowly began to wake up.
Hanna moved her head from side to side and slowly opened her eyes. She was very confused about what had happened and didn't initially realize she was in a hospital.
But Sophie proudly told her about how brave she had been all day and that she was the one who called 911. Shortly after Hanna woke up, the police entered her room.
A strange smellThey began questioning her about what had happened, but Hanna had no idea. She went to bed feeling slightly nauseous, but the rest was very blurry. The officers looked very serious and took notes.
It wasn't until later that the police finally explained everything. When the officers were finally able to enter the apartment, something immediately caught their attention. There was a distinct smell in the air, but they hadn't yet connected it to anything.
MoldBut as soon as they entered Hanna's bedroom, they were shocked to find that the smell had worsened and likely came from there. They immediately investigated the situation and discovered mold growing behind the bed, behind the wardrobe, and in some corners of the ceiling.
The mold was slowly spreading throughout the house and was likely the reason Hanna had been feeling so sick and sleepy. The spores were toxic, and if Sophie hadn't called 911, it could have ended badly for both of them.
Doctor's visitHanna was so proud of her daughter for handling the situation so well. She felt foolish for not recognizing the problem earlier. Sophie was also examined for symptoms, but luckily she was completely healthy.
The doctors couldn't explain why the mold had only affected Hanna and not Sophie, but they were relieved that it hadn't spread to both of them. It could have had serious consequences otherwise.
The entire building was affectedOnce Hanna was feeling better, she called the building manager to explain the situation. They would not return there if there was still mold present.
The owner of the multi-unit building was shocked to hear that something like this had happened and immediately had all the other apartments inspected for mold by a specialized company.
A massive outbreakTo the horror of all the tenants and the owner, it turned out that there was a major mold infestation in the building, and each apartment had to be evacuated and thoroughly cleaned.
It was a lengthy process that took several weeks to complete. Everyone in the building was shocked by this and sent their well wishes to Hanna and Sophie.
Forever changedSophie was forever changed after this eventful day, but in a positive way. She felt more confident in who she was and more independent. She was very proud that she had saved her mother.
Thanks to professional and costly treatment, the mold never returned to the apartments. With her courageous call to emergency services, Sophie not only saved her mother but the entire building.