Centurion taxi driver assists stranded woman

A good-hearted taxi driver recently assisted a Centurion woman stranded on the side of the road when no one else stopped to assist her.

Theresa Maree was on her way to work on the N14 towards the R21 when her car broke down, and no one except taxi driver Rasta Nayela stopped to help her, reports Centurion Rekord.

“I was an emotional wreck because my car is fairly new and has never given problems before,” said Maree.

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“But on this specific day, while I was getting onto the R21, something went wrong with the electronics of my car and I couldn’t drive any further. Unfortunately, I was blocking many of the cars that wanted to continue. Some drivers even started shouting at me to get out of the way,” Maree said.

The area where Theresa Maree’s car stopped.

It was then that Nayela stopped and offered assistance.

“By that time, I was already in tears. The next thing, I know Rasta stopped behind my car, gave me a hug and consoled me. He said ‘madam, don’t stress’, and he held me while I broke down further,” she said.

Nayela told Rekord that he felt obligated to help Maree as she was alone and he could see she was “very stressed”.

“We were on top of the bridge and I saw a woman on her own. It was my first instinct to stop and help her. She was very friendly but very emotional. I managed to push the car out of the way so people could pass,” Nayela told Centurion Rekord.

Maree said Nayela was her saving grace on Thursday morning, and that he stayed with her by the side of the road until help arrived.

“I will be looking differently at taxi drivers from now on,” she said.

“We have such a preconceived way of thinking about others, and this man made my day, helping me out and making me feel safe.”

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