Tragedy always strikes at unexpected moments when life is seemingly normal but changes in the next second. Something like this happened to Justin Anderson, a native of Philadelphia who took an Uber on February 25th and survived a fatal brain haemorrhage during his ride.
His saving grace was none other than his Uber driver, Taras Zvir, who was coincidentally a former ambulance driver.
Zvir, who had recently begun driving for Uber, picked up Anderson, 41, in Philadelphia for a ride to Bucks County, where his job is located.
"We just started talking about music and stuff,” Zvir recalls about the 45-minute ride. “And he mentioned that he [drove for] Uber as well. So we were just talking about that for a little bit.”
Near the end of the trip, Zvir noticed that Anderson's head was tilting and he appeared to be "suffocating." “His head was kind of bobbing up and down, but he was still communicating,” Zvir recalled to PEOPLE. “I was [like], 'Justin, you okay? Do you need anything?' I immediately rolled the windows down, blasted my A/C to try to see if it would make him feel a little better. But he was just getting worse and worse, and eventually he became unresponsive.”
Due to his prior experience as an ambulance driver, Zvir immediately called 911 and described Anderson's symptoms to the dispatcher. As advised by the dispatcher, he even performed CPR for Anderson.
“I opened the door, placed him flat, and made sure that his head wasn't hitting the concrete because he didn't have any support or anything. So once I placed him flat, I just started doing CPR and was doing it for maybe six to eight minutes,” he said.
Soon, the EMS arrived and began working on Anderson immediately. Zvir shared that the medical team performed Narcan and covered everything, as it was not sure if Anderson was suffering from a drug overdose or medical emergency.
It was later, when Anderson's mother, Deborah, wrote it in a GoFundMe, that it was found that Anderson had suffered a spontaneous brain haemorrhage. A CT scan conducted after he was admitted to the hospital showed a large bleed on the right side of his brain, for which he underwent a craniotomy procedure.
“Justin was diagnosed with a subdural hematoma (brain bleed), which was determined to be due to an AV fistula (an abnormal connection between an artery and a vein) that he most likely was born with but never knew he had,” wrote Deborah.
Deborah later shared that Anderson remained unconscious but had made some progress. She also added that Anderson, who was a father of a 17-year-old girl and had recently begun his new job, "would not be here today, had he been home alone."
"Had he not been in the back of that Uber, he would not be here today. I am also thankful for the Uber driver's quick response to call 911,” she said.
Zvir, on the other hand, wishes to meet Anderson when he gets better. He is in touch with Deborah, and he makes sure that he recovers. "I saw somebody needed help and I just helped. That's it," said Zvir about his instant kind act that saved Anderon's life.
In the case of such a situation, do not panic, and call 911 immediately. Additionally, it is good for you and others if you get trained in CPR, as the small act could save someone's life.
His saving grace was none other than his Uber driver, Taras Zvir, who was coincidentally a former ambulance driver.
Zvir, who had recently begun driving for Uber, picked up Anderson, 41, in Philadelphia for a ride to Bucks County, where his job is located.
"We just started talking about music and stuff,” Zvir recalls about the 45-minute ride. “And he mentioned that he [drove for] Uber as well. So we were just talking about that for a little bit.”
Near the end of the trip, Zvir noticed that Anderson's head was tilting and he appeared to be "suffocating." “His head was kind of bobbing up and down, but he was still communicating,” Zvir recalled to PEOPLE. “I was [like], 'Justin, you okay? Do you need anything?' I immediately rolled the windows down, blasted my A/C to try to see if it would make him feel a little better. But he was just getting worse and worse, and eventually he became unresponsive.”
Due to his prior experience as an ambulance driver, Zvir immediately called 911 and described Anderson's symptoms to the dispatcher. As advised by the dispatcher, he even performed CPR for Anderson.
“I opened the door, placed him flat, and made sure that his head wasn't hitting the concrete because he didn't have any support or anything. So once I placed him flat, I just started doing CPR and was doing it for maybe six to eight minutes,” he said.
Soon, the EMS arrived and began working on Anderson immediately. Zvir shared that the medical team performed Narcan and covered everything, as it was not sure if Anderson was suffering from a drug overdose or medical emergency.
It was later, when Anderson's mother, Deborah, wrote it in a GoFundMe, that it was found that Anderson had suffered a spontaneous brain haemorrhage. A CT scan conducted after he was admitted to the hospital showed a large bleed on the right side of his brain, for which he underwent a craniotomy procedure.
“Justin was diagnosed with a subdural hematoma (brain bleed), which was determined to be due to an AV fistula (an abnormal connection between an artery and a vein) that he most likely was born with but never knew he had,” wrote Deborah.
Deborah later shared that Anderson remained unconscious but had made some progress. She also added that Anderson, who was a father of a 17-year-old girl and had recently begun his new job, "would not be here today, had he been home alone."
"Had he not been in the back of that Uber, he would not be here today. I am also thankful for the Uber driver's quick response to call 911,” she said.
Zvir, on the other hand, wishes to meet Anderson when he gets better. He is in touch with Deborah, and he makes sure that he recovers. "I saw somebody needed help and I just helped. That's it," said Zvir about his instant kind act that saved Anderon's life.
In the case of such a situation, do not panic, and call 911 immediately. Additionally, it is good for you and others if you get trained in CPR, as the small act could save someone's life.
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