TCA HIGHWAY ANGEL SAVES A MAN IN CARDIAC ARREST

12/31/2015
Alexandria, Virginia

Joseph Wiggins of Plant City, Florida, a truck driver for Phillip Williams & Sons Inc, also of Plant City, Florida, has been named a Highway Angel by the Truckload Carriers Association (TCA). Wiggins is being recognized for saving a man in cardiac arrest.

On the morning of May 11, 2015 Wiggins was traveling north on I-95 just north of St. Augustine, Florida when traffic completely stopped due to an earlier fatality accident.  Over two hours had passed and Wiggins found himself parked next to another tractor trailer. He observed the passenger collapse and fall forward in the truck. He then saw the driver in the truck begin shaking him in a panicked state. Realizing something was terribly wrong, Wiggins jumped from his truck and approached the passenger door. He quickly climbed up into the cab where he found the passenger on the floor between the seats. Wiggins quickly assessed the man and determined that he had no pulse and was not breathing.

Wiggins immediately removed the man from the cab and with the help of another motorist carried him to the grass median. Wiggins began CPR and advised a motorist to dial 911. As Wiggins continued performing CPR on the passenger, another motorist, a nurse joined him to help perform CPR for near 15 minutes before the arrival of Fire Rescue to the scene. Fire Rescue continued CPR and shocked him several times before regaining a pulse. The man was airlifted to a nearby hospital and after surgery and rehab he has made a full recovery.  Wiggins has spoken several times to him and his family is grateful for all that Wiggins did to help that day on the highway.

Before Wiggins became a professional truck driver, he was in law enforcement. If it wasn’t for Wiggins and his previous experience, doctors said the man would have died at the scene.

For his willingness to help, TCA has presented Wiggins with a certificate, patch, lapel pin, and truck decal. Phillip Williams & Sons Inc also received a certificate acknowledging that one of its drivers is a Highway Angel.