by A devastated wife has recalled the moment she found out her gym-loving new husband had died while driving to work. Just six months after getting married, Darren Brooks, 41, died ‘unexpectedly’ from a basic but potentially fatal heart condition he didn’t know he had.
Darren was later diagnosed with hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HOCM). As a result of the condition the walls of the heart become thick and stiff.
Over time, the heart cannot take in or pump out enough blood to supply the body. Hypertrophic cardiomyopathy is known to cause sudden cardiac death in athletes.
Onlookers who saw the 41-year-old say he was ‘struck’ by the wheel on the M61. Darren tragically died instantly at the scene on 15 November 2022.
The field engineer loved going to the gym and had an ‘active’ lifestyle. Darren’s healthy lifestyle left his wife, Sarah Brooks, to believe there was ‘no reason to suspect’ anything was wrong.
Many young sports stars have died from the condition, including former Manchester City footballer Marc-Vivien Foé, 28, in 2003. As well as basketball player Hank Gathers, 23, in 1990 and basketball player Reggie Lewis, 27, in 1993.
As a result former footballer Fabrice Muamba suffered a cardiac arrest and collapsed during Bolton’s FA Cup match against Tottenham Hotspur in March 2012. Fortunately he was revived despite his heart stopping for 78 minutes and now supports British Heart Foundation campaigns.
Sarah, 37, is taking part in a charity skydive in Nottingham with the North West team at Utilita, where Darren worked for three years, to raise money for the British Heart Foundation. The theater buyer, who lives in Oldham, Greater Manchester, said: “It was just horrible. We had just started married life and were excited to start a family and excited to do everything.
“You never expect to lose your husband so early in life. We were planning on having a family. We were just in love. The day started as usual. I always called him when I was on my lunch hour. The police answered his phone and asked me where I was and I had to see me in the morning.
“He was on the motorway going to his first job this morning. Unfortunately he suffered a medical incident, which we now know was caused by a disease called hypertrophic cardiomyopathy. He died at the wheel. Fortunately the he didn’t hurt anyone else.It was members of the public who noticed that Darren fell on the wheel.
She added: “All the emergency services were called. They tried to revive him for over 30 minutes on the motorway but unfortunately he was pronounced dead at the scene. They thought he had a heart attack because he wasn’t they know the way of the Of course, it took us six to eight weeks to finally find out the cause of his death.
The 37-year-old revealed that doctors had dismissed his ‘big heart’, which her husband’s active lifestyle was a sign of HOCM. Sarah said: “He had no signs or reason to suspect anything was wrong. He went to the gym every day. He loved going to the gym and kept himself active. He wasn’t never one to sit around He ate healthily.
“He was told he had a big heart but because he likes to go to the gym they said that was normal for his frame. But that’s one of the symptoms of HOCM that can cause an enlarged heart. It basically stops it the walls. The muscles of the walls thicken and if left untreated it can cause sudden death.”
The woman revealed that her late husband always wanted to ‘sky jump’ and he hopes he can now because she has two tattoos on her arms with Darren’s ashes in them. hell’ she had been through after his death.
Sarah said: “Utilita was very sad on the day he died. He left a huge hole in the shape of Darren in the North West Utilita team. We wanted to do something in his memory to raise awareness. He always wanted to skydive..I thought what better way to pay tribute to him than by jumping out of a plane.
“I’m excited because I have two tattoos with Darren’s ashes in. I think he’s fulfilling one of his wishes that he wanted to do for him. He would be shaking his head at me. He knows and which I would never do.
“I want to make someone think if they have symptoms or anything to go and get themselves checked. If I can stop one family going through the hell I went through that’s all I want.
“There are a lot of people with underlying conditions who don’t know about it. You never know what’s around the corner. If I can save just one person and something positive comes out of something so negative it makes life a little bit better easy.”
A GoFundMe page has been set up by 18-year-old Hannah Hughes, whose father also works for Utilita and who had surgery for a congenital heart condition aged just four, which has currently raised £2,810. Hannah said: “It was a very unexpected thing that happened to Darren. It shouldn’t have happened. It was very unfair.
“It’s very sad but this is why it’s important to raise money so things like that can be diagnosed earlier. I also had heart surgery when I was four. Without that, not I would be here today. Being able to put money into their research and heart research is very important to me and my father.
“It’s been life-changing for me. It makes me less nervous to make the jump. It’s so important because it’s bigger than me.” You can donate to the GoFundMe here – https://www.gofundme.com/f/brooks-500
