A schoolboy has been hailed a hero for steering his mums speeding car to safety and saving both their lives after she suffered a fit.
Lauren Smith, 27, was driving her Ford Ka along the busy A120 dual carriageway in Essex when she suffered a seizure for the first time in her life.
She was violently shaking with her hands gripped to the steering wheel as the car started smashing and scraping the central reservation.
Thats when her quick-thinking son Ben, eight, took control from the passenger seat and grabbed the steering wheel.
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He somehow managed to guide the out-of-control car across two lanes to safety on a grass verge next to the hard shoulder.
The child put the hazard warning lights on before emergency services were called to the scene and rushed Lauren to hospital where she was given a series of tests.
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Lauren has hailed her son a hero for saving her life, she said: After I had a seizure, the next two or three minutes of Bens quick-thinking saved our lives.
I have never had a seizure before so Ben had no idea what to expect.
As soon as he realised I was unresponsive and the car was driving erratically and fast down the A120, he knew he had to act fast.
We were in the left hand lane and initially swerved into the right hand lane and crashed into the central reservation, scraping along it.
Lauren added: Ben was able to tell his name, my name and our full home address to the driver that stopped.
I was still having a seizure and unaware of anything going on.
Lauren, who lives in Colchester, came around after the seizure which she estimates lasted between five and ten minutes.
She was taken to hospital and was later discharged after tests and is now waiting for an appointment with a specialist after the drama on Monday.
She continued: I am much better now but my body aches. I havent had a seizure before so I dont know what caused it.
Im happy and grateful both of us somehow got out unharmed because of my sons actions. I hate to think how it wouldve ended if I was in that car on my own.
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My son is my hero and he deserves recognition for his bravery and quick-thinking.
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I dont know how he knew what to do – I certainly wouldnt have done at his age.
The paramedics said they were amazed at how he reacted.
A spokesman for the East of England Ambulance Service said: We were called at 3.48pm on Monday to reports of a medical incident on the A120, near the A1232 slip road.
We sent an ambulance and rapid response vehicle to the scene.
One patient was taken to Colchester General Hospital for further treatment.
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