An East Haven teen is being called a hero after he helped save a swimmer who nearly drowned.
14-year-old Davin Garamella was having a normal day at the beach in East Haven with his family when an incident happened which they will never forget.
“This was just an incredible act of human kindness. As Davin said, ‘It’s like I really wasn’t thinking,’ because there’s no real thought to when you think from your heart,” said Shawn Polizzi Garamella, Davin’s mother.
On Sunday, Davin and his family noticed a man swimming in the Sound off of Morgan Avenue. As the man was drifting in the water face down, Davin raced to check on him. “He didn’t respond at all. So I flipped him over as fast as I could and just hauled him up in the sand so his face wasn’t inhaling more water,” said Davin.
They called 911, and firefighters rushed there to treat the unconscious man. Emergency crews credit the survival of the man to the heroics of Davin, which his parents also echo. “It was an amazing community effort. But we are super proud of him,” said David Garamella, Davin’s father.
“I think anyone would have done it, the same thing and I was just there at the right time,” said Davin. The East Haven Fire Department is expected to honor Davin with a lifesaving award.
The down-to-earth teen who is going to start ninth grade says the focus is the man he helped to rescue. “I want to keep him in my thoughts and prayers, him and his family, and that he has a full recovery and all that,” said Davin.
