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Crash Survivor Thanks His Hero

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By LAURA FRAZIER

lfrazier@tampatrib.com

Published: December 17, 2008

TAMPA - At the scene of a serious accident a year ago on U.S. 92 near Brooksville, Valrico resident Bob Walker was pinned inside his mangled pickup, his left arm severed just below the elbow.

Veterinarian Mark Brown pulled off the road and used his belt as a tourniquet on Walker's arm to stanch the bleeding. He stayed with Walker until paramedics came to airlift him to Tampa General Hospital, where doctors told Cindy Walker her husband would have bled to death "within minutes" if not for Brown's quick thinking.

For the one-year anniversary of Brown's selfless act, the Walkers made an appointment Dec. 9 at the veterinary clinic he owns, Central Animal Hospital in St. Petersburg. The Walkers posed as clients with a new puppy, but their real purpose was to express their thanks and present Brown with a gift - a custom, Western-style belt made from black buffalo skin to replace the makeshift tourniquet they assumed had been ruined.

Brown was surprised to find Walker waiting for him in an exam room, and Walker was astonished to see Brown wearing the same belt that saved his life.

Brown said he would put the gift to good use.

"Maybe I can save somebody with this belt too," he said.
Cindy Walker said her husband is now learning to use a prosthetic arm with a high-tech hand that features independently powered digits designed to move and perform like a human hand.

"The first day he got the arm he used it to open up a can of dog food to feed the dog, and it was just amazing," she said. "It's the most incredible thing."

At Brown's office, Walker used his prosthetic arm to hold a gift bag with the new belt and his right arm to hug the man who saved his life.

"You are just my hero," he said.
Cindy Walker said a team of people "worked their magic" to save her husband's life a year ago, but she holds a special place in her heart for one man and his belt.

"If it weren't for Dr. Brown, Bob wouldn't be here."

Photojournalist Julie Busch contributed to this report. Reporter Laura Frazier can be reached at (813) 657-4523.

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