Euan Lonnen, 18, was working as a supervisor at the Highland Farm Café in Dingwall when he spotted a driverless car slowly rolling across the car park with two women trapped inside.
He sprinted after the car and tried to turn the steering wheel, but it was locked. He then jumped inside and pulled the handbrake, stopping the car centimetres from another parked vehicle.
Quick actions praised
Neither passenger was injured and both vehicles escaped without damage. Café owners Kenneth and Lesley posted CCTV footage on social media, where it drew thousands of likes and comments.
Euan said: "I was talking to a customer at the door, and she pointed out the car with no one in the driver's seat, that had started to roll. I started walking out to see if I could help, then I started running after it. My first thought process was to angle the wheel towards the overflow car park and see if I could get the car to stop - but the guy had turned the car off and took the keys, so the steering wheel had locked. Something inside of me said 'just get in the car,' and I put the handbrake on. The car had started skidding, so it didn't really stop until about a centimetre away from the other car. It was very, very close, and everyone was a bit shaken up."
Kenneth said: "We're very proud of how Euan reacted to the car rolling away. Euan is always looking for ways to look after our customers and this is another example of his looking out for others. The two elderly passengers hadn't even got their seat belts on so his actions really did save the day!"
