Autistic boy grabs wheel when mom faints

PLYMOUTH, England, Jan. 30 (UPI) -- British emergency workers said a 9-year-old autistic boy took the steering wheel of his mother's car after she blacked out, and steered the car to safety.

Jonathan Anderson, who suffers from Asperger's syndrome, grabbed the wheel of his mother's Toyota Avensis after she blacked out while driving at about 70 mph in rush hour traffic, The Daily Mail reported Wednesday.

Authorities said the car weaved through three lanes of traffic before the boy was able to stop, using the handbrake.

"The last thing I remember is driving over the flyover at Marsh Mills to take Jonathan to school in Plympton," said the boy's mother, Marion Anderson. "I must have passed out, because the next thing I saw was a paramedic fitting a brace around my neck."

Authorities said Jonathan will be presented with a certificate of bravery for his quick-thinking, which they said likely saved not only his and his mother's lives, but potentially the lives of others as well.

"He's my little superhero," Marion Anderson said.