'What if it was me?': Driver reflects after helping man who passed out behind the wheel

Besides keeping an eye on the road, drivers have been watching out for fellow motorists.

One recent example is Facebook user Erman Eusope who shared his experience after trying to help a fellow driver on July 20.

In the post, Erman said he slowed down his vehicle after spotting a stationary car on a grass patch along Tampines Road. Its hazard lights were not turned on.

He also noticed that the driver was slumped over his seat as if he was "sleeping or reading messages from his mobile phone."

Feeling that something was amiss, Erman made a U-turn to check on the driver. He also called the police and SCDF for assistance.

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Erman then approached the car, which was locked, and banged on the window and door to rouse the driver.

Suspecting that the unresponsive driver had suffered from cardiac arrest, he sought help from passing vehicles.

As it turned out, a van driver who stopped to help was formerly from the Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF). He suggested that they extract the man from his car and perform cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) on him.

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Other motorists who stopped to render help also offered the men tools such as a hammer to help break the rear window of the vehicle.

"It was like telepathy. They knew what to bring along, they knew that we were trying to break open the car's window," Erman said, thanking them for their assistance.

They managed to pull the driver out of the car while Erman updated the paramedics on his status over the phone as they made their way to the scene.

The man was very pale when the van driver started to perform CPR on him.

Erman also pulled the handbrake in the car to prevent it from moving and retrieved the man's mobile phone because he thought it was ringing.

But what struck Erman the most was the photo of young children which the man had set as the wallpaper of his mobile phone.

"I immediately felt very down as I was reminded of my two boys. What if it was me?" he asked himself.

Despite the efforts to save the driver, the 52-year-old man died after he was conveyed to Sengkang General Hospital, the police said.

They added that investigations are ongoing.

After reading Erman's post, numerous netizens commended the display of kindness from him and the other motorists that day, saying: "Not all heroes wear capes." Several members from the deceased's family also expressed their gratitude for the help rendered.

lamminlee@asiaone.com