Good Samaritan collapses, dies on Highway 29

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Lake County man was assisting big rig when tragedy struck

Friday, January 26, 2007

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By MARSHA DORGAN
Register Staff Writer

A Lake County man collapsed and died early Thursday morning while trying to help a stranded truck driver on Highway 29.

John McGregor, 50, of Hidden Valley Lake, stopped his car on the highway around 6 a.m., just north of Tubbs Lane near Calistoga, to help a big-rig driver whose truck had become stuck trying to negotiate a sharp turn in the road, California Highway Patrol Officer Jerry Rico said.

The truck driver got out of his truck while the victim, who was headed south on Highway 29, parked his pickup on the shoulder and got out to help the driver with traffic control, Rico said.

While waiting for the CHP to arrive, McGregor collapsed, Rico said. “There was no traffic collision.”

Paramedics arrived and administered CPR, but McGregor was pronounced dead at the scene, Rico said.

The highway was closed in both directions for about 10 minutes. It was reopened to one-lane traffic from 6:30 to about 9:30 a.m.

McGregor’s autopsy is scheduled for today.

20 comment(s)

Jean wrote on Jan 26, 2007 7:35 AM:

" The Register should do a story on the number of events of big rigs becoming stuck on narrow curves of Highway 29 and especially Highway 128 near the Napa Sonoma Line. There is no signage or other caution/prohibition for the increasing large trucks using wine country roads. "

CindyC wrote on Jan 26, 2007 8:25 AM:

" Big rigs using Hwy 121 between Napa and Solano counties in order to avoid jammed Hwy 29 and Hwy 12 might also be addressed. I've seen some unholy almost-misses around some of the tight curves. "

gregN. wrote on Jan 26, 2007 11:11 AM:

" Big rigs on Silverado Trail are becoming a danger latley too! "

dalilah wrote on Jan 26, 2007 11:50 AM:

" This story is not about big rigs on the trail. I hope the register does a follow up on the cause of death. "

Bre wrote on Jan 26, 2007 12:26 PM:

" Dalilah is absolutely right. This story is not about big rigs, it is about exactly what the title says, "Good Samaritan collapses, dies on Highway 29." The story is about a very kind man who tried to help a driver and died while doing so. While big rigs on the trail ARE an issue, that is not what we are reading about here. "

coy farrer wrote on Jan 26, 2007 1:04 PM:

" What's a almost miss? "

Tom wrote on Jan 26, 2007 1:21 PM:

" You people make me sick. A man dies, probably leaving behind a family and many friends, and you want to complain about big rig traffic? Where is the compassion? Save all this talk for another time. "

JasonT wrote on Jan 26, 2007 5:43 PM:

" I agree. This story is about the apparent tragedy of a good -hearted man who (probably) died of a heart attack due to stress caused by the traffic that he graciously volunteered to direct after a big rig truck jack-knifed in the road. "

Jimmy wrote on Jan 26, 2007 9:11 PM:

" I just got my class A license today and I am looking for a job driving a big rig. That is a tragic story though. "

AT wrote on Jan 26, 2007 11:16 PM:

" What I would like to know is why did it take emergency services an hour to arrive to this scene as per the CHP log. I realize that hey did not know about the medical emergency but you would thing they would have arrived much sooner knowing a truck was blocking a busy and dangerous highway near the commute hour. If they had arrived sooner, they may have been able to do more for Mr. McGregor. "

Doug wrote on Jan 27, 2007 11:36 AM:

" I was a personal friend of John McGregor, the man who died trying to help someone else. John had a very bad heart, but a very big heart due to his love for Jesus Christ. John did leave behind a family, but he also left behind an example of a godly, Christian man who sacrificed for others as His Lord did for him. "

Bob and Arlene Rowe wrote on Jan 27, 2007 11:55 AM:

" John McGregor was a very kind Christian man and will be missed by everyone at Middletown Bible Church. Please pray for his wife and family as they are leaning on the Lord to get them through this sad time. "

AT wrote on Jan 28, 2007 11:33 AM:

" Please give my condolences to his family. I was driving to work that day and saw someone performing CPR on him. It took me by surprise to learn that he was the person who stopped behind the big rig in order to warn cars who were approaching a truck that was stalled on a blind corner. I did not know him personally but he must have been very brave. It was very cold and dark on the mountain that morning and there was lots of traffic. I would not have ruled out a serious collision occuring between the truck and oncoming traffic it it wasn't for people like Mr. McGregor who stopped to warn them. It is the actions of people like Mr. McGregor that save lives everyday and make this world a better place. He will be missed. "

Good Person, not a "Samaritan" wrote on Jan 29, 2007 12:11 PM:

" That this good person passed while trying to help someone is a sad occurance. My condolences to his family and friends. As to the writer of the story, study up before making biblical references. The "Good Samaritan" story was about prejudice. In short the story goes - a Jew in need of help was ignored by his own people and ignoreed by people who were thought to be freinds of his people. The person who finally did stop to help was the Samaritan, or person from Samaria, a people very much disliked by the Jews. - Point being, ignore social prejudices and know the person. Is the Register writer trying to inferr a Lake County resident is to a truck driver of unknown origin as a Samaritan was to a Jew in Biblical times? "

luke1 wrote on Jan 29, 2007 3:09 PM:

" I believe the writer of the story used "good Samaritan" to point out that he stopped when no one else was, not necessarily referring to where John or the truck driver were from. In today's society we know that "good Samaritan" refers to someone who helps someone else in need, which is exactly what John was doing. "

heatherLuukkonen wrote on Jan 29, 2007 3:13 PM:

" On behalf of myself and my family, I'd like to thank you all for your prayers and support in our time of need. We know our dad will be greatly missed, and are sad, but we rejoice because he is now rejoicing in heaven! Praise God for the comfort He gives to us. "

Friend wrote on Jan 29, 2007 6:10 PM:

" There was more than one good samaritan that day. The man that did CPR until help arrived is a saint. Many people drove by while this man worked on Mr. McGregor. How many stopped to help him? My prayers go to the family. "

Ruth wrote on Feb 1, 2007 10:15 AM:

" John McGregor had his focus in life right; he knew for Whom he lived. He was not afraid of death, because John knew Him in Whose presence he would forever live. Jesus Christ, his Lord and God, was also his Life! "

Realistically wrote on Feb 1, 2007 12:56 PM:

" I often wonder, what if there is no heaven. Then what? We just don't exist anymore just like the trillions of human beings who have lived and died before we existed. Then millions of years from now many more people will have lived and died. I also wonder, if there is a heaven how many spirits can it accomodate? What would you do there that would make it so much better than life here on Earth? I believe by believing in after life that you are taking for granted what you have right now, life. It's too bad every person couldn't just realize that it's amazing just to exist and to live in peace with one another and stop destroying are planet. "

CPT Thomas L. Jones wrote on Feb 21, 2007 12:26 PM:

" I just read this and can barely write. John McGregor and I went on a road trip in his International Harvester pick up in 1975 when we were both 19. He stopped to help every single person that we saw stalled by the side of the road. It was a magic trip. God Speed You John! CPT Thomas L. Jones, Base Camo Adder Iraq "

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