Around 7 p.m. last night, a driver for MTA's BxM18 line passed out behind the wheel while traveling up Madison Avenue. One heroic passenger saved several lives by taking control of the wheel after the bus continue to move, uncontrolled, for a few blocks. "I wasn’t trying to be hero. I just wanted to stop the bus," says Guy Praisler.
Passengers noticed something was wrong when the bus started to accelerate. Once it began smashing into vehicles, they began to panic. According to the New York Post, the driver's foot was still on the gas pedal. Praisler somehow managed to get the driver's foot off of the gas, stopping the bus at 85th Street.
Another passenger said they thought the driver had either a heart attack or asthma attack. After the bus finally stopped, emergency responders opened the door and the driver woke up. He was taken to Columbia-Presbyterian.
25 people were injured, most of whom were passengers in the vehicles struck by the bus.
