Cabbie of the Month
"He Saved My Life"
Cabdriver Almas Weldingwala rushes to perform life-saving CPR on a fallen passenger.
By: Jonathan Bullington
One minute, Chicago resident Renee Kutrubis is taking the elevator to the lobby of her condo on the 400 block of East South Water Street, ready to meet the taxi she had called for a ride - the next minute she's laying on the lobby floor surrounded by 20 concerned faces.
In between those two points were several harrowing minutes when Kutrubis clung to life - barely conscious and struggling to breathe. Yet, as fate would have it, the cabdriver she called would be the man to save her life.
Kutrubis said she suffers from a respiratory disease that caused her to faint, falling out of her wheelchair and onto the floor of her building's lobby. It was in that position that cabdriver Almas Weldingwala found her when he arrived to pick her up. He said the building's security guard was yelling for someone to call 911 as he arrived on the scene.
“I thought she had a cardiac arrest,” Weldingwala remembered. “She was barely conscious and breathing with great difficulty, like she was choking. She had almost stopped breathing at one point and was gasping, trying to get out 'help.'”
Weldingwala, a 20-year veteran driver, has primarily serviced passengers with disabilities for many of those years. He is also certified to administer CPR. Upon discovering Kutrubis, he began the process - tilting her head back, breathing into her mouth and applying chest compressions. He said it took two sessions before she recovered enough to start breathing regularly.
With another man, Weldingwala helped Kutrubis back into her wheelchair in time for paramedics to arrive. Weldingwala said he stayed for a little while before leaving, just to see if his help was needed.
Though nothing like this has happened to him before, Weldingwala is quietly modest about the incident, showing nothing but sincere concern for Kutrubis' well being. Since that day, he's been back to visit her and see if she needs anything.
As for Kutrubis, the day after this incident she praised Weldingwala for his quick thinking.
“He saved my life,” she said. “He really did. I would love to thank him so much. Without him, I might not be sitting here.”
About Almas Weldingwala
Driving since 1989, Weldingwala has been a staunch supporter of Chicago's accessible-taxi program. He was recognized by the late Master Chauffeur Dan Van Hecke as a key contributor to ideas such as airport vouchers as incentive for driving an accessible cab, separate van lines at the airport and the city's Driver Excellence Award.
