Bus driver's heroic act moves many

BEIJING - A bus driver who saved 24 of his passengers after being fatally injured by a piece of metal that flew through his bus's windshield has garnered praise for his selfless deed.

Wu Bin, a 48-year-old bus driver from East China's city of Hangzhou, died of his wounds on Friday, three days after a sheet of metal flew through the windshield of his bus while he was driving from the city of Wuxi in Jiangsu province to Hangzhou.

Although the sheet of metal severely injured Wu, a surveillance video shows him stopping the bus, turning on the hazard lights, putting on the parking brake and advising the passengers to remain seated before collapsing from his injuries.

"I didn't realize what had happened until I saw the blood-covered driver and the smashed windshield," said a passenger surnamed Zhou, who was sleeping on the bus when a loud noise awoke him.

"The incident could've turned into a traffic accident resulting in major casualties without his heroic efforts and professional ethics,"  Zhou said.

Local police in Wuxi are still investigating the cause of the accident.

Millions of netizens have shown their respect for Wu on major microblogging sites like Sina Weibo and QQ.com, asking authorities to find out how the accident happened and to take care of Wu's relatives.

Wu's sister Wu Bing said that while her brother is an "ordinary person," the actions he took near the end of his life made her family proud of him.

Wu's colleagues were impressed, but not surprised, to hear about Wu's deed.

"The details of his daily work show the quality of his work, as well as demonstrate his strong sense of responsibility," said Yu Wei, another bus driver and fellow employee of the Hangzhou Long-distance Passenger Transportation Company.

The company said Wu drove safely for over one million km without any traffic accidents or complaints from passengers.

Doctor Fang Zheng, who treated Wu at the No 101 Hospital of the People's Liberation Army in Wuxi, said he was surprised that Wu was able to stop the bus and direct the passengers, considering the massive amount of pain he was in at the time.

"His liver was seriously damaged and three ribs were broken. In such circumstances, he would be in great pain. I'm amazed that he could do that," Fang said.

"Heroes are not just those people who have superpowers, but regular people who do good deeds day after day," wrote microblogger Wang Wenhe on QQ.com.