A pediatrician who is recovering from a serious bike crash personally thanked the first responders who helped save his life. NBC 7’s Jeanette Quesada shows the special reunion at Fire Station 36.
A very special reunion took place at Fire Station 36 in San Diego's Clairemont Mesa neighborhood on Wednesday when Dr. Mike Nelson expressed his heartfelt gratitude to the men and women who treated his injuries and got him to the hospital after a bike crash two months ago.
Nelson said his first-responders make a difference in people’s lives every day but that it often goes unnoticed.
“Nice to meet you," Nelson said as he hugged each member of the team who helped save his life almost two months ago. "I like your mustache,”
“It gives me a renewed sense of thankfulness, gratitude and, most of all, of humility to know that there are other angels unsung, unspoken angels that are constantly watching over us,” Nelson told NBC 7.
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Nelson, who has been on the frontlines of the medical field as a Navy doctor treating Marines during Operation Iraqi Freedom and also back in the States as a pediatrician, credits the first-responders with saving his life.
“It’s very rare that, as a doctor, you actually get to be the patient,” Nelson said.
Nelson crashed his bike on July 29 on his way to a doctor’s appointment. The accident happened in Clairemont at the intersection of Cowley Way and Mount Acadia Boulevard.
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Chris Bascham is one of the engineers on Engine 36 who responded to the incident. When he and his team arrived at the scene, Nelson was sitting on the guardrail covered in blood, his bike lying on the ground nearby.
“We got him on the gurney for the ambulance and headed to a trauma center within three to four minutes of getting on scene,” Bascham said.
Nelson doesn’t remember much about the accident.
“The morning of the crash, I hit my head so hard on the pavement that I blacked out, and I have no idea of the event whatsoever,” Nelson said.
Nelson suffered multiple injuries, including a skull fracture, concussion, small brain bleeds, small brain bruises, a broken nose, broken collar bone, broken shoulder, three broken ribs and lung trauma.
“Thanks to that team, I’m alive today and here to share that story,” Nelson said.
The past two months have been a long road to recovery, but Nelson is grateful to be alive and to have a team to thank for their commitment to serving their community.
“Thank you, keep doing what you guys do,” Nelson told them.
Nelson cannot stress enough the importance of wearing a helmet anytime anyone is on a micro-mobility device. He believes wearing one that day helped save his life. Although he hasn't been back on a bike since the crash, he does hope to return to his favorite hobby in the future.
