Crews in training exercise rescue Prescott man from river

Prescott man reunited with crews who rescued him

For both a Prescott man and crews with Mesa Fire, being in the right place and at the right time meant a difference between life and death. FOX 10's Kenzie Beach explains why.

MESA, Ariz. - For a Prescott man, being in the right place and at the right time back in July meant the difference between life and death, and on Aug. 21, the family reunited with the swift water rescue crews who managed to rescue the man amid a training exercise.

What they're saying:

It’s the first time Bill Davis and his wife, Glenna, have been reunited with the crew that saved his life in July.

"This lady was yelling from the shore, ‘there is a guy up there with no vitals,’ and I just knew it was him," said Glenna.

The backstory:

Bill and Glenna were floating in their tubes together back in July when they got separated.

Miles down the river, Bill was overpowered by the current.

"I just ran out of strength," Bill said. "My body had no strength to do anything."

Bill's floating body ran right into these men, turning their training exercise into a real-life rescue.

"We rolled him over, thinking he needed help up. Once we rolled him over, he was as blue as our shirts," said Ray Rodriguez with the Mesa Fire Department.

"Somebody grabbing me from the back, that was the last thing I remember," Davis said.

Bill Davis (Right)

Crews were able to fill the gaps for Bill. He now knows how severe his case was, and he is thankful for each day, his wife, and his family.

"Talk about seconds mattering, pulling him out of the water and getting on his chest as quickly as they did," said Cpt. Matt Kobylinski with the Mesa Fire Department. "The results are right here. Daughters have their dad. A wife has her husband."