Bathery: A 55-year-old lorry driver who suffered a massive heart attack behind the wheel got a second chance at life, thanks to a nurse who administered uninterrupted CPR during a frantic 20-km dash to a hospital in Bathery.

Athira, a nurse at Iqra Hospital and a native of Pilakkavu House in Naiketty, was returning home with her husband, Rajith, and other family members after offering prayers at the Seetha Sreerama Temple at Ponkuzhi on the Kerala-Karnataka border when fate placed her in the driver’s path.

The incident occurred around 9.30 am. As the family was about to leave the temple, they spotted a lorry that had veered off the National Highway and crashed into an earthen embankment. Rushing to the vehicle, Athira found the driver, Shajahan (55), a native of Engapuzha, clutching his chest in acute pain and rapidly slipping into unconsciousness. A few bystanders joined them and together they pulled him out of the lorry.
Recognising the signs of a heart attack, Athira immediately asked that Shajahan be shifted into their car.

As he began losing consciousness, she started administering cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) without delay and instructed her husband to drive to Iqra Hospital as quickly as possible. She also alerted the hospital’s emergency team, ensuring that everything was in place before they arrived.

For the next 20 km, Rajith drove at top speed while Athira continued CPR inside the moving car, keeping the unconscious driver alive until they reached the hospital. By the time they arrived, the emergency team was ready to receive the patient, and the continuous CPR had already helped him regain consciousness.
Shajahan is now undergoing treatment at Iqra Hospital and is recovering.

Athira has been working at the hospital for the past four months. Hospital authorities and colleagues commended her presence of mind and swift response, while Athira said the satisfaction of saving a life was beyond words.