Pinellas County Deputy, family thank Pasco County firefighters who saved his life
Firefighters honored for saving deputy
On Friday, Retired Pinellas County Deputy Dakota Dellechiaie thanked the firefighters and first responders who helped him survive a devastating crash last year.?Haley Hinds reports.
PASCO COUNTY, Fla. - On Friday, Retired Pinellas County Deputy Dakota Dellechiaie thanked the firefighters and first responders who helped him survive a devastating crash last year.
What we know:
It's a moment the deputy and his wife, Angel, have been waiting for, honoring the first responders who helped kick-start his recovery and give him another chance at life.
"They are all very big to me," Deputy Dellechiaie said. "They did everything they could to make sure I came back."
The backstory:
Almost a year ago on October 1st, the deputy was driving to work through Pasco County when the Sheriff's Office said a propane truck was in the road, backing up into a driveway. Deputy Dellechiaie's wife said he couldn't see it because the road was so dark. So, he hit the truck and became trapped.
The entire front seat of his cruiser was under the tanker.
Courtesy: Pasco County Fire Department
Within minutes, firefighters got there to get him out.
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"We did the math on it and in six minutes and twelve seconds from the time we put the truck in park, and had him out of the car," Pasco County Fire Captain Peter Arnold added.
Dellechiaie's wife said they didn't think about their safety to save a life.
Angel Dellechiaie explained, "at any given moment, that propane tanker could have blown up."
Timeline:
They rushed him to the hospital where he started his recovery. His wife was pregnant at the time, but didn't leave his side and didn't lose hope.
Courtesy: The Dellechiaie family
"The first few weeks in the ICU, they told me on day four to bring him to a nursing home, let him survive with dignity," Angel Dellechiaie said. "I felt offended and heartbroken."
She reached out to everyone she could, including firefighter Dylan Delandro, who told her step-by-step what they did and how they got him to the hospital.
She said, "Dylan even after the fact of being on the scene, helped me to make my decision, and he didn't even know it."
It ultimately led her to make her decision to keep the faith and start a life-long bond.
Courtesy: The Dellechiaie family
"It meant a lot that he continued to reach out," she explained. "It's been almost a year."
The Recovery:
Deputy Dellechiaie went to a specialized rehabilitation center in Atlanta, where he got even more help to recover.
Courtesy: The Dellechiaie family
His fellow deputies welcomed them home with open arms in April.
RELATED: Pinellas deputy who suffered traumatic brain injury in tanker crash returns home: ‘He’s a fighter’
Giving Back:
On Friday, they got to thank the first responders who saved his life.
Deputy Dellechiaie said, "when the accident happened they were amazing and did everything they could to make sure I lived."
Courtesy: The Dellechiaie family
Which is just a small token for giving the father of five another chance to create memories with his kids.
"He just took his neuropsychology test and passed with flying colors, he can live a normal life and that's all we could ask for," his wife said. "We are indebted to you guys forever."
What's next:
Deputy Dellechiaie medically retired from the sheriff's office, but he's focusing a lot of time on his kids.
His wife said her husband is a great pageant dad and next month he is going to go back on the stage for the first time with his daughter since the crash.
The Source: FOX 13 gathered this information from a ceremony put on by the Dellechiaie family and first responders.