FDNY Firefighter Recalls Off-Duty Heroics At Staten Island Restaurant
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) -- One of New York's bravest was out for dinner with his wife when he found himself in the middle of a restaurant rescue.
On Monday, Steve Cresci spoke about his off-duty heroics.
He spends his workdays racing out on emergency calls, ready to save lives at a moment's notice. On Friday at Da Noi restaurant, Cresci found the emergency right at the next table.
"This was like the first off-duty save, and it was just my job," he said. "Was just doing my job."
Cresci and his wife, Jen, were enjoying dessert when Juan Camacho started choking on a piece of meat just one table away. Unable to breath, he started to turn read.
"Right away I got up, not even hesitating, I got up," Cresci said.
That's when Camacho says out of nowhere, he felt arms reach around him.
"I put my hands right near his diaphragm and boom, right out," Cresci said.
Camacho says it was almost like fate.
"I mean how many chances do you have, a fireman sitting next to you when you're choking," he said.
What's more, the firefighter and his wife almost ate somewhere else that night. They had planned to go to a favorite spot in New Jersey, but since Jen is pregnant they decided to eat locally.
As a result, Cresci ended up being the right man at the right place at the right time.