Life Saving Incident
July 5, 2022
Florida
Volusia County
Deland
The Deland Police Department a sergeant in their department with the Medal of Valor for saving a child struggling to swim.
Sergeant Tony Tagle rescued the child near New Smryna Beach in April and also received a Lifesaving Award.Sergeant Tagle was off duty and fishing when he saw two children having trouble swimming. Police say that's when Sergeant Tagle and another person at the beach jumped in the water to bring both children safely back to the jetty. "Sergeant Tagle showed exceptional courage while saving a life, and it shows that we have public servants that are willing to risk their lives for others even when they are off-duty," DeLand Police Chief Jason Umberger said in a statement.
Law enforcement says if Sergeant Tagle did not jump in to save the two children, they may have drowned. The Medal of Valor award is the police department's second-highest honor.
Sergeant Tagle has been with DeLand Police since 2014. The city is just over 30 miles north of Orlando. He's going to need a bigger award shelf soon if he keeps it up. On June 30 he, alongside Volusia Sheriff Mike Chitwood, was presented with certificates of recognition for their service to the migrant community, the police department shared in another post.
The history of law enforcement in the United States is a long and wonderful history of bravery. This website is dedicated to documenting the heroic deeds of law enforcement officers throughout the United States who have either given or risked their lives to save others. There are many stories of bravery and heroism for many who are considered first responders. However, it is those in law enforcement who are most likely to be the first to arrive upon a location requiring life saving acts engaging dangerous hostage takers, running into burning buildings/vehicles, providing first aid to seriously injured victims, saving near drowning victims and much more are what the women and men of law enforcement do routinely and at many times, great peril to their own safety.
It is our mission to document the history of lives saved by those dedicated women and men in law enforcement. To share with others the dramatic deeds of those individuals who are the first, first responders. It is so important for our citizens to understand that law "enforcement" is not always about enforcing the law but rather being there when our citizens need us.
It is to this end we are dedicated to promoting documentation regarding the history of law enforcement and the lives they have saved.
