My brake light came on during evening rush hour, was not fun

I had a scary moment yesterday on the Sharjah Dubai road. In the middle of heavy traffic, my brake system warning light suddenly lit up red. I felt my heart drop because I had no idea if it was safe to keep moving or if I needed to stop right there on the busy highway. I remembered reading that responding to vehicle notification lights correctly depends on the color, and that red usually means stop as soon as it's safe. I carefully moved to the hard shoulder and called for help. Turns out the brake fluid was very low. It could have been really dangerous if I'd just ignored it. Has anyone else had a similar experience? How do you stay calm when a light comes on in heavy traffic?