'I'll do it again in a heartbeat': Driver stops unconscious cabby's taxi with his car along PIE

The taxi in front of him was drifting in and out of the middle lane.

Sensing something was amiss, Chalmers Chin, 31, made a split-second decision while driving on the Pan-Island Expressway on Tuesday (Oct 1) morning.

He overtook the cab from the right and used his own car to stop the vehicle.

Before it bumped into the rear of Mr Chin's car, the ComfortDelGro taxi had been moving slowly with blinking hazard lights. The passenger in the front seat had also attempted to steer the vehicle, The Straits Times reported.

When the taxi came to a stop at the expressway's road shoulder, Mr Chin rushed over and found an unconscious man behind the wheel as well as two women and two children as his passengers.

The cabby was pulled out of the vehicle by Mr Chin with the help of another driver and paramedics who were attending to a nearby accident.

The 60-year-old man was taken to Tan Tock Seng Hospital where he later died. He is believed to have suffered a heart attack.

Though his actions may have prevented a more serious accident, Mr Chin remained saddened by the cabby's death.

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His reason for stopping the out-of-control vehicle on the expressway? "I was thinking of my child when I stepped up," said Mr Chin, a father to a five-month-old son.

"When I saw that the woman was with two children, I could only imagine the stress she was going through," he told the Straits Times.

The damage to his Volkswagen Golf GTI was the least of his worries. "My aim was to get the car to stop. I will do it again in a heartbeat," he said.

While paramedics attended to the ill cabby, another driver gave the taxi passengers a lift to the nearest MRT train.

"This sad incident has showcased the generosity of heart of fellow road users and we are thankful for them," said Tammy Tan, ComfortDelGro Group's chief corporate communication officer.

She added that the company was "deeply saddened" by the cabby's death and it is assisting his family. ComfortDelGro is also trying to contact the affected passengers.

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editor@asiaone.com