A devastated wife has recalled the moment she discovered her ‘gym-loving’ new husband had died on his way to work. Just six months after getting married, Darren Brooks, 41, died ‘unexpectedly’ from an underlying but potentially fatal heart condition he had never known about.
It was later discovered that Darren had hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HOCM), a condition that causes the walls of the heart to thicken and stiffen.
Over time, the heart can no longer receive or pump enough blood to the body. Hypertrophic cardiomyopathy has been known to cause sudden cardiac death in athletes.
Onlookers who saw the 41-year-old man ‘collapsed’ at the wheel on the M61 say Darren tragically died instantly at the scene on November 15, 2022.
The field engineer ‘liked going to the gym’ and had an ‘active’ lifestyle. Darren’s healthy lifestyle led his wife Sarah Brooks to believe ‘there was nothing to be suspicious about’.
Many young sports stars have died from the condition, including former Manchester City footballer Marc-Vivien Foé in 2003, aged 28, basketball player Hank Gathers in 1990, aged 23, and basketball player Reggie Lewis in 1993, aged 27.
It caused former footballer Fabrice Muamba to collapse after suffering a heart attack during Bolton’s FA Cup match against Tottenham Hotspur in March 2012. Thankfully, despite his heart stopping for 78 minutes, he was revived and now supports British Heart Foundation campaigns.
Sarah, 37, is taking part in a charity parachute jump in Nottingham to raise money for the British Heart Foundation, alongside the North West team at Utilita, where Darren worked for three years. The theatre buyer, from Oldham, Greater Manchester, said: “It was terrifying. We had just started our marriage and were excited to start a family and do everything.
“You can never imagine losing your husband at such an early age. We were planning to start a family. We were just in love. The day started off normally. I would always call him during my lunch break. The police answered his phone and asked where I was and said they needed to see me that morning.
“He was on the motorway going to work first thing in the morning. Unfortunately he had a medical incident, which we now know is caused by a condition called hypertrophic cardiomyopathy. He lost his life at the wheel. Fortunately he didn’t hurt anyone else. Members of the public noticed Darren collapse at the wheel. He went into the centre lane of the motorway.
He added: “All emergency services were called. They spent over 30 minutes on the motorway trying to revive him but sadly he was pronounced dead at the scene. They didn’t know the route so they thought he had a heart attack. It took us six to eight weeks to finally find out the cause of death.”
The 37-year-old revealed her husband’s active lifestyle led doctors to ignore his ‘big heart’, a symptom of HOCM. Sarah said: “He had no symptoms 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 was never one to sit around. He ate healthily.
“He was told he had a big heart but they said it suited his physique because he loved going to the gym. But this is one of the symptoms of HOCM, which can cause the heart to enlarge. It basically closes the walls. The muscles of the walls thicken and if left untreated it can cause sudden death.”
His wife said her late husband ‘always wanted to skydive’ and now hopes he can do it because she has two tattoos of Darren’s ashes on her arms. She hopes to stop others having to go through the ‘hell’ she went through after her husband’s death by supporting the British Heart Foundation.
Sarah said: “Utilita was in shock the day he died. He has left a huge hole in the North West Utilita team in the shape of Darren. We wanted to do something to raise awareness in his memory. He had always wanted to skydive. I didn’t think there was a better way to honour him than by jumping out of a plane.
“I’m excited because I have two tattoos of Darren’s ashes. I feel like I’m fulfilling one of his wishes. He would laugh out loud at me. He knows it’s something I would never do. If I can’t do it for my husband, then I can’t do it for anyone.
“I just want to make sure that if anyone has any symptoms or anything, they go and get checked out. If I can prevent one family from going through the hell that I went through, then that’s all I want.
“There are so many people who have underlying conditions that they don’t know about. You never know what’s around the corner. I would never wish what happened to me, losing a husband at such a young age, on anyone. If I can save just one person and something positive can come out of something so negative, life becomes a little easier.”
A GoFundMe page, which has now raised £2,810, was set up by Hannah Hughes, 18, whose father also works for Utilita and who had surgery for a congenital heart condition when she was just four. Hannah said: “It was so unexpected for Darren to have happened. It shouldn’t have happened. It was so unfair.
“It’s heartbreaking but that’s why it’s important to raise money so that these things can be diagnosed earlier. I had a heart operation when I was four. I wouldn’t be here today without it. It’s so important to me and my dad to be able to fund their research and congenital heart research.
“It’s been life-changing for me. It makes me less nervous to do the jump. It’s for such an important cause that’s bigger than me.” You can donate to the GoFundMe here – https://www.gofundme.com/f/brooks-500