Karin Jordal, 69, collapsed Thursday in her living room in Pinon Hills, California, and was motionless on a couch when her son Tore in the Philippines checked in through the Internet.
"He tried to call her, and got no answer," Tore's brother, Ole Jordal, said by telephone from the western Norway city of Bergen. "He had also tried to call the police and ambulances (in California) but couldn't get through."
Ole Jordal said his brother then called him in Norway, as he and his wife, Tammy, originally from Long Island, New York, were having breakfast.
"My wife is American and she knew exactly whom to call for help," he said. "It took five or 10 minutes for the ambulance personnel to arrive."
He said the family was on the verge of tears when they watched on the Web camera as ambulance personnel assisted their diabetic mother, who is recovering in the Desert Valley Hospital in California
