Twin brothers from Alabama are being praised for their heroic actions after rescuing their drowning father from a backyard pool .
On June 14, Bridon and Christian Hassig, 10, and their friend Sam Ebert, 11, noticed that their father, Brad, needed help while attempting underwater breathing exercises in the pool, and they sprang into action.
“He usually sits kind of like he’s meditating,” Christian told WBRC. “I can see him rocking a bunch, and then he’s laying right next to him. Because I had my goggles on, I could see his face turn very pale blue. I told Briden, ‘Dad’s not okay.'”
Briden added, “Sam and I jumped in the water and I got one shoulder and he got the other. We just dragged him to the steps.”
After bringing Brad to the surface, Briden performed CPR, as he was seen in the 1993 film “Sandy,” although he has no training, he explained in an appearance on the Today show. Christian also helped report a driver who called 911.
“I went from being calm to being slammed on the deck of the pool, and then everyone everywhere was in chaos,” Brad recalled Wednesday. “They were first responders. I heard, ‘Dad, Dad. Come back, Dad. You have to be OK.’ It was crazy.”
Brad was taken to a local hospital and released 24 hours later, according to WBRC. He told the news station that he was “very proud” of his sons and “will be grateful for the rest of my life” after they saved him.
“Physically, they couldn’t pull an 185-pound person out of the water like that and know and do what they all do and be exactly (as they do),” Brad added. . “There’s no lack of action, running as fast as they can. It’s the hand of God.”
However, Britten said he knew he needed to save his father’s life.
“I think I had moments with him, moments of joy, sadness and some crazy moments, but I thought, ‘I don’t want this to be the last moment,'” he said today.
Brad’s wife, Lori Hassig, also shared a Facebook post about the events of the last month.
“Thank you, God, for giving these three boys the strength to save my husband,” she wrote. “You will always be our hero.”