Restaurant Allegedly Tells Sick Teen to Call 9-1-1 Via Pay Phone

The teen was having an asthma attack


UPI | | Thursday, March 7, 2013


LONDON, Ontario -- A teen experiencing an asthma attack said he was turned down when he asked to use a phone at a Tim Hortons restaurant in Canada to call for help.

Brett Wolfe, 17, was at the coffee shop in London, Ontario, Sunday when he started having breathing problems and asked to use the phone, Canadian Broadcasting Corp. reported.

"They said, 'There's a pay phone across the street.' Well, I said 'I need to call 911, I'm short of breath, I'm having an asthma attack' and they just ignored me," Wolfe said.

CBC said another patron in the coffee shop called paramedics with a cellphone.

Tim Hortons said the teen did ask to use the phone, but didn't say he was in distress until an employee went to get a manager, CBC said.

In a statement sent to CBC, Tim Hortons said "our restaurants normally handle these unique situations right in the vast majority of cases. In this particular situation, this team member misjudged the circumstances."
 




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