A 73-year-old taxi driver was sent to the hospital on Monday (6 July) around 12.50pm after he lost consciousness at the wheel.
The accident occurred along East Coast Parkway (ECP) towards the Marine Coastal Expressway (MCP).
In a video posted by TikTok user @winnie.loves on 6 July, she recounts the scary incident with her son, who was in the car with her.
The two were on the ride from Jewel to Crawford Lane around 12.45pm, making their way to meet her husband and son for lunch.
Speaking to MS News, @winnie.loves, identifying herself as Winnie, noted that the taxi driver appeared fine at first and was in a chatty mood.
However, as the vehicle cruised along the expressway, she noticed that the bushes along the road shoulder were “brushing against the window”.
Source: Winnie Lee
In the TikTok clip, Winnie wondered aloud: “How come they never cut the bush?”
But she quickly realised that the car was actually driving against the guardrail.
Winnie observed that the driver was yawning, so she kept talking to him in an attempt to keep him awake. The driver did correct his car back into the lane after the first time.
“But it only lasted less than a minute before his car started brushing against the bushes all the way,” the 36-year-old stay-at-home mum said.
At one point, Winnie asked if he was feeling alright, and he responded that he was okay.
However, out of concern, she asked to pull over on the expressway, which he agreed to.
Source: @winnie.loves on TikTok
“This is when I realised he probably had a stroke or a heart attack,” Winnie said.
Winnie shared in her video that her first instinct was to “jump off the vehicle” with her son.
Later, she recounts how she “forcefully opened the car door so that it creates a kind of friction” against the metal railings along the highway.
Source: Winnie Lee
Thanks to the friction, the car gradually came to a stop, and she woke up her sleeping son, who was luckily asleep during the incident.
A passerby came by and helped the two to get out of the car. They alerted both the police and ambulance and waited for them to arrive.
Winnie also immediately called her husband, who came to the site later.
In response to queries from MS News, the Singapore Police Force (SPF) said it was alerted to an accident around 12.50pm on 6 July.
A 73-year-old male taxi driver was conveyed unconscious to the hospital, the police added.
The Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF), which was alerted at the same time, told MS News that the driver was conveyed to Tan Tock Seng Hospital.
A ComfortDelGro spokesperson confirmed that the taxi was brought to a safe stop and that the driver is receiving medical attention.
In response to MS News, the transport operator said: “Our thoughts are with him and his family at this time, and we kindly request that their privacy be respected.”
Police investigations are ongoing.
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Featured image adapted from @winnie.loves on TikTok on Winnie Lee.