An 'Angel In the Car' As Tinley Teen Saved Lives of Mom, Many Others

TINLEY PARK, IL — A Tinley Park teen was praised Wednesday for showing a poise even many adults couldn't muster as she faced a medical emergency while riding in a car driven by her mother.

Tinley Park High School sophomore Reaghan Monahan was in the passenger seat en route home from a volleyball game on I-294 when her mother Elizabeth suffered a seizure. Her foot locked on the gas pedal, creating an emergency and moment of panic for the 15-year-old, who is still learning to drive. Reaghan acted fast, grabbing the steering wheel to right the car in traffic. She then reached over, slid the seat back and climbed on top of her mother to take control of the wheel and pedals.

As the incident unfolded, authorities were receiving calls of an erratic driver. Monahan stuck her hand out a window and flagged down a fire department vehicle driven by a firefighter, who quickly tailed her and ensured they made it to safety. The car came to a stop between South Holland and Chicago Heights.

Somehow, no one was injured.

Officials say Monahan saved multiple lives that day: hers, her mother's and other drivers on the roadway.

Monahan was surprised when ushered out the school doors Wednesday morning to first responders lining a walkway and camera crews awaiting her arrival. The teen seemed flustered by the attention, almost left speechless.

"It was a very hard day, but I'm just glad my mom's here, and I'm here," she told reporters.

Monahan, who only has her learner's permit, tapped into what she'd learned in her driver's education classes with Top Driver, she said. She also credits the firefighter for his role in helping her mother.

"I don't know what we would have done if he wasn't there, but he kind of saved her life," she said. "I just remember sitting in the front of his car, just very shocked at what had just happened, and that I'd survived."

It was a matter of being in the right place at the right time for Monahan, who had decided to ride home with her mother that night, rather than ride the bus with the team.

That choice likely saved lives. "I always think about that," she said. "Or if I was even a few years younger, not knowing how to drive a car..."

South Holland Firefighter/paramedic Tom Farr said he's never seen anything like this—"not to this magnitude, especially with her age and level of experience with driving.

"When we found out exactly what happened, in the ambulance, I said, 'Wait, what did you do?!' Farr said. "It was incredible ... We're out on the expressway all the time, and it never goes that good. It's always the extreme opposite.'"

Farr said he returned to the station and told his lieutenant, "We have to make her a big deal."

Tinley Park High School Principal Dr. Theresa Nolan was astonished at the student's quick thinking and bravery and more than happy to applaud her publicly.

"It's beyond belief that a 15-year-old was able to take control of that situation and even perform some of the maneuvers that she did," Nolan said. "As an adult driving for decades, I don't know if I would have thought to move the seat back, and yet a girl who doesn't even have her driver's license thought to do that.

"... I do believe that there was an angel in the car that day."

Farr bestowed Monahan with a certificate from the South Holland Fire Department, along with a $250 giftcard "to be used however she likes."