ORANGE, Calif. — Nurse and EMT teacher Phylicia Hassapis, 49, died Wednesday after being run over by her own car while trying to stop it from rolling down her driveway.
Hassapis was attempting to reverse her Volvo sedan out of her garage, the Orange County Register reported.
After opening the garage door, Hassapis noticed her boyfriend had parked his car in the driveway, preventing her car from exiting the garage.
Hassapis decided to move her boyfriend’s car herself, since he was sleeping, but forgot to put her own car in park.
The car started rolling down the driveway, so Hassapis tried to stop it, putting herself behind it. The car dragged her to the street before stopping.
Hassapis was a registered nurse, EMT teacher and EMS program director at Orange Coast College. She was teaching two EMT courses this semester, which started last week.
“Phylicia was a beloved instructor and helped many students achieve their dream of becoming an emergency medical technician,” Dennis Harkins, Orange Coast College president, said in a statement.