Orkland Driver Unconscious for 17 Minutes
A motorist in Norway suffered a medical emergency and remained unconscious behind the wheel while his vehicle traveled for 17 minutes across a three-kilometer stretch on county road 714 in Orkland. The car drifted through two tunnels and across a bridge before emergency responders physically stopped it at the entrance of a third tunnel.
Emergency Intervention Inside Slørdalstunnelen
The incident began at 12:29 p.m. on a Wednesday when Trøndelag Police District received a report about a traffic accident. According to police operations leader Einar Røstum, cited by NRK, the car initially drifted into a guardrail and struck the wall of the Brattstiåstunnelen at a speed limit zone of 80 kilometers per hour.
A passenger, identified as a woman in her 50s, was inside the vehicle and remained physically uninjured throughout the ordeal. After the initial collision, the vehicle continued forward at a very low speed. A concerned motorist in a trailing vehicle contacted authorities after witnessing the erratic movement.
Emergency services dispatched police units, fire crews, and an air ambulance to the scene. A firefighter from Krokstadøra fire station ultimately managed to physically halt the moving car inside the Slørdalstunnelen. Fire Chief Leif Harald Bremnes praised the responding personnel for their decisive action in stopping the vehicle.
Medical Cause of Death Confirmed by Police
First responders initiated cardiopulmonary resuscitation on the driver, a man in his 50s, but his life could not be saved. Police investigator Ingrid Kaja Read confirmed to NRK that an autopsy will be conducted to formally establish the exact medical cause of the fatality. Authorities verified that the driver’s medical emergency occurred prior to the physical impacts with the tunnel walls and guardrails.
Medical Emergency Causes Car to Drive Without Conscious Driver
What caused the vehicle to travel for 17 minutes without a conscious driver?
The driver experienced an acute medical emergency that caused him to lose consciousness just before the vehicle struck the guardrail and tunnel wall at the Brattstiåstunnelen. The car then continued moving forward at a very low speed across a distance of roughly three kilometers.
How was the moving vehicle finally brought to a stop?
A firefighter from the Krokstadøra fire station executed a physical intervention to stop the car inside the Slørdalstunnelen after emergency units arrived on the scene.
Were any other individuals injured during the incident?
No other injuries occurred. A female passenger in her 50s who was inside the vehicle during the 17-minute journey emerged physically uninjured.