A good Samaritan London taxi driver is being hailed a hero after saving a young woman from taking her own life.
50 year old, Steve Teague, recalled how he was driving home after his shift when he spotted the woman attempting to jump off Lambeth Bridge. Quickly realising the situation, Mr Teague pulled his cab into the side of the road and immediately went over to the woman.
Quick Thinking
Without a second thought, and risking his own life, he hung himself over the bridge and grabbed the woman’s wrist while another member of the public held onto his belt so that he didn’t go over too.
“I jumped over the top of the bridge so I was off my feet.”
Mr Teague said: “I jumped over the top of the bridge so I was off my feet. There was a guy behind me who was hanging onto the back of my trousers to stop me going over.
“I was hanging off the top of the bridge reaching to the girl and I managed to get hold of her wrist. I was telling her to stand up but she was really struggling. She was adamant that she was going to throw herself off.”
Hanging On
Pleading with her not to jump and waiting on the emergency services to arrive, Mr Teague spent the next five minutes trying to coax her back to safety.
He commented: “I just kept repeating, ‘you’re not going anywhere, there’s no way I’m letting you go, it’s not going to happen.’ There was two other guys there and we basically held onto to each other to ensure no one went anywhere. It felt like forever but in reality it was only about five minutes.”
“There was two other guys there and we basically held onto to each other to ensure no one went anywhere.”
Successful Result
Once the police, fire brigade and life guards arrived on the scene, the woman could be pulled over to safety. She was taken to hospital and an extremely emotional Mr Teague drove home.
After receiving a standing ovation from his fellow cabbies at his local café, a modest Mr Teague said: “I’ve said to the other drivers we’d all do the same. I’m just glad I was there. It was the right place, at the right time I think. You’d hope everybody would do it.”
“Several members of the public showed remarkable courage, risking their own safety to save her as she came perilously close to falling.”
London Fire Brigade’s Lambeth Borough Commander, Richard Wood, said: “I would like to thank everyone who assisted in the rescue of a distressed young woman from Lambeth Bridge.
“Several members of the public showed remarkable courage, risking their own safety to save her as she came perilously close to falling.”
For confidential support call the Samaritans on 116123 or visit a local Samaritans branch, see www.samaritans.org for details.