Taxi Driver Almost Dies After Choking on Candy During Ride

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Taxi Driver Almost Dies After Choking on Candy During Ride

Near-Death Experience: Cabbie Saved by Crash After Choking on Candy

A taxi driver and his passenger had a narrow escape when he choked on a piece of candy and passed out at the wheel on Sunday. The subsequent crash probably saved his life, police said.

Candy nearly killed a taxi driver -- and his passenger -- in Wuppertal, Germany.

picture-alliance/ dpa

Candy nearly killed a taxi driver -- and his passenger -- in Wuppertal, Germany.

It was the taxi ride from hell for both the driver and his 87-year-old female passenger. They were driving along peacefully in Wuppertal, a city near Düsseldorf in western Germany, on Sunday when the 50-year-old man choked on a piece of candy and had a violent coughing fit during which he lost control of the vehicle and collided with a parked van.

The situation became life-threatening within seconds because he lost consciousness and began to asphyxiate. But the rogue taxi drove on uncontrolled for a further 60 meters until its journey was brought to an end by another collision, this time with a parked VW, police said in a statement on Monday.

"The force of the impact presumably dislodged the sweet from his throat so that the driver regained consciousness without any assistance," police said in a statement.

Both he and his passenger were completely unhurt, probably because they had fastened their seatbelts, police said.

The incident caused a total of €10,000 ($12,900) worth of damage.

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