San Carlos Mayor Omar Ahmad died from a heart attack Tuesday morning, shortly after calling 911 from his home, the city announced. He was 46.
Paramedics responded to the call and transported Ahmad to Sequoia Hospital in Redwood City, where he was pronounced dead upon arrival, according to San Carlos officials.
He had presided over a city council meeting Monday night. Vice Mayor Andy Klein said Ahmad didn’t say anything at the meeting about feeling bad and appeared to be in his usual good spirits.
“We’re all pretty shocked here,” Klein said. “No one saw this coming.”
Ahmad was elected to the council in 2007 and became mayor in December 2010 – the second Muslim mayor of a United States city. He also was on the board of San Mateo County Transit District and was vice chair of the Peninsula Corridor Joint Powers Board.
Ahmad, who was single, was born in Ohio and grew up in Florida, where his siblings still live.
He moved to California in 1998 to work for @Home Networks, after several years with the Discovery Channel Online, according to city records. Ahmad also worked at Napster, Netscape and Grand Central Communications. In addition, he founded TrustedID, Logictier and SynCH Energy.
Ahmad brought enthusiasm to everything he did, including hobbies, Klein said.
“He became a perfectionist of many things, whether his love of cigars or guitars, he would learn everything he could about,” Klein said. “He had an incredible amount of knowledge about many things you wouldn’t expect.”
Ahmad’s dedication to the citizens of San Carlos and his “passion for democracy” will be missed, City Manager Jeff Maltbie said in a written statement.
“Those of us at City Hall who had the opportunity to work with and get to know him are devastated by his loss,” he said.
The city’s flags were lowered to half staff on Tuesday.
In a statement released by the SamTrans district, colleagues described him as having a good sense of humor and being dedicated to public service.
“He was kind and funny, warm and genuine and he believed in the work he was doing on behalf of the public,” Karyl Matsumoto, SamTrans board president said in the statement. “Omar was not afraid to ask the tough questions or make difficult decisions. He loved his work, he was passionate and he had a terrific sense of humor.”
Email Bonnie Eslinger at beslinger@dailynewsgroup.com.
