Teenager Holds His Breath While Driving in Tunnel, Then Faints and Crashes

A 19-year-old man caused a three-car crash in Oregon Sunday when he fainted after holding his breath while driving through a tunnel.

The teenager, Daniel J. Calhon, lost consciousness and control of the car as he drove through a tunnel close to Portland, the Associated Press reports.

Some people hold their breaths in tunnels as part of a game or superstition, State Police Lt. Gregg Hastings told the Associated Press.

Calhon’s car drifted over the centerline and had a head-on collision with an oncoming vehicle. A pick-up subsequently hit Calhon’s car. Four people were injured — Calhon and his passenger as well as the two passengers in the oncoming car — though none of them seriously.

Calhon has been cited for reckless driving and reckless endangerment.

[AP]