TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Despite suffering a heart attack, the driver of an intercity bus was able to safely pull the vehicle to the side of a highway before passing out.
Kuo-Kuang bus driver Huang Fu-neng (黃福能) while returning to Taichung from Taipei on Sunday evening (Jan. 28), when the bus reached the Taichung Day section of National Freeway 1, he suddenly started suffering severe chest pains, reported UDN. He managed to endure the pain long enough to safely pull the bus onto the shoulder of the highway before losing consciousness.
Cheng Hsiu-chu (鄭秀菊), the station manager of Kuo-Kuang Motor Transportation Co's Taichung Station said that although Huang was rushed to the hospital for emergency medical treatment, doctors were unable to resuscitate him and he was pronounced dead. Doctors suspect that the cause of death was myocardial infarction, but this has yet to be officially confirmed by an autopsy.
Cheng said that the 62-year-old Huang had been a driver for the bus company for over 20 years. According to Cheng, he had just spoken to Huang earlier that day and did not notice anything unusual about Huang's demeanor.
Cheng lauded Huang for being able to endure the pain long enough to drive the bus to the side of the road, which he believes was an effort on the part of Huang to ensure the safety of the passengers.
She said that Huang performed well, driving punctually and in a disciplined manner. She said he was an excellent driver with good health.
There were no apparent signs of any issues and it was unexpected for such a tragedy to occur, said Cheng. His two sons had rushed to the hospital in the evening and were deeply saddened by the sudden passing of their father, accoding to Cheng.
Bus pulled over to side of road. (Taichung City Police Department screenshots)