Toledo Mayor In Critical Condition After Suffering Cardiac Arrest

Feb 2 (Reuters) - The mayor of Toledo, Ohio, was in critical condition at a northwest Ohio hospital on Monday, a day after suffering cardiac arrest while driving, his physician said.

Mayor D. Michael Collins, 70, was in the intensive care unit at the University of Toledo Medical Center after suffering cardiac arrest on Sunday afternoon.

"It is still too early to establish the timing or likelihood of his recovery," Dr. Christopher Cooper, a cardiologist and senior vice president for clinical affairs at the University of Toledo Medical Center, said in a statement.

Collins, a retired Toledo police officer and political independent, was sworn in as mayor in January 2014 after serving as a city councilman.

Council President Paula Hicks-Hudson was sworn in as acting mayor on Sunday.

"He remains heavily sedated and is being closely monitored," Cooper said.

Collins had served in the U.S. Marine Corps before joining the Toledo Police Department, where he worked for 27 years. (Reporting by David Bailey in Minneapolis; Editing by Mohammad Zargham)