1.
He used his phone to call the airline.
He explained the situation and cancelled his reservation.
Then he called 911 for emergency help.
911 is the emergency number to call for help in the United States.
2.
An ambulance arrived about 10 minutes after he called.
By then he was in so much pain that he could barely walk.
Once inside the ambulance, they gave him oxygen to help him breathe.
But the pain was still terrible.
Then they drove him into a hospital near the airport.
Luckily, the hospital was on his health plan.
That means his health insurance is supposed to pay for everything.
Medical costs in the United States are very high.
3.
When he arrived at the hospital, he was taken to the emergency room.
After some tests, a doctor told him he had a kidney stone.
It was a very small stone, but it caused a lot of pain.
It was passing through a small tube in his body, from his kidney to his bladder.
The pain would go away once it got to his bladder.
Until then, he had to take pain medicine to reduce the pain.
4.
Harry didn’t have to stay at the hospital for very long.
With the pain medicine, the pain went away very quickly.
He took a taxi back to his hotel and checked in for another night.
Then he called the airline and made a reservation for another flight.
The flight will leave tomorrow.
Until then he’ll just rest in his hotel.
There may even be a good movie to watch.
5.
So, when you're travelling, please be prepared for emergencies.
Make sure you have medical insurance.
You never know when something like this can happen to you!
So be prepared!
