Taxi Driver Online

Aug 29 2006

A HERO taxi driver stabbed seven times during a frenzied night attack in Paisley said thanks yesterday to residents who saved him from bleeding to death in the street.

Injured dad-of-eight Mohammed Younis was lying in agony and close to passing out when several men and women rushed from their homes to help him.

They used towels and clothing in a desperate attempt to stem the flow of blood from his wounds in his back, legs and hand.

The kind-hearted neighbours in Bruce Road, Gallowhill, stayed with him and kept him conscious until medics arrived at the scene and took over.

Last night 53-year-old Mr Younis, who is making a slow recovery from his serious injuries, said: “I want to thank everyone who helped me that night, they were wonderful.

“The ambulance crew and everyone at the Royal Alexandra Hospital in Paisley, did so much for me.

“But I especially want to thank all the people who rushed out of their homes in the Bruce Road area. I could have bled to death in the street if they hadn’t come to my rescue.

“They saved my life and I and my family want to say a special thanks to them.”

The courageous grandad of seven, who was presented with an award for saving six people in a horrific blaze in Paisley, was caught up in a argument with a young man in his early 20s and when the row became heated he was stabbed seven times – three times in the back, three more times in the leg and once on the hand.

After being rushed to hospital he went through three hours of surgery to repair the damage. He needed a mass of stitches.

Hours after the attack, one source said: “He’s lucky to be alive. He was bleeding from wounds all over his body. I thought he was in danger of bleeding to death.”

A 21-year-old man has appeared at Paisley Sheriff Court charged with assaulting Mr Younis.

In November last year the quick-thinking cabbie was honoured for his bravery after he rescued two women and four men when fire broke out in flats in Well Street in the town’s West End.

And if he hadn’t put his own life at risk others may have died trapped in their homes.

Mr Younis was on nightshift when he saw smoke and flames shooting out of windows and a tenement roof where families were asleep unaware their lives in danger.

He radioed for help then ran across the street to the blazing tenement where he kicked in the entry door to be met with a wall of thick smoke.

Despite the danger he bravely ran battling through the choking smoke to batter on every door in the building to waken residents.

By the time he reached the top landing, where the smoke was thickest, Mohammed was close to collapsing.

But somehow he managed to stagger down the stairs and into the safety of the street.

After the rescue residents suffering from smoke inhalation were taken to the RAH for treatment.

Months after the drama the ex-paratrooper’s bravery was highlighted by police who presented him with a prestigious certificate of commendation from Strathclyde Chief Constable Willie Rae.

At an award ceremony in Paisley Mill Street Police HQ Superintendent Brian Lennox said Mr Younis was in the right place at the right time, adding: “He did very well, he’s a brave man.”

http://icrenfrewshire.icnetwork.co.uk/p ... _page.html