EUR This N That | Urban Black News Blog

Tomas Lopez fired for saving a drowing man on Hallandale Beach was given Key to the City.

Lifeguards and other rescuers are often under appreciated and not given the proper accolades for their heroic accomplishments in the line of duty.  But have you heard of someone being fired from their job for being a hero?

Tomas Lopez ran to save a man at a Hallandale, Florida beach, but he was 1500 feet from his coverage zone when he did it.  Lopez told CNN that he knew that he had broken the rules to save the man’s life:

“At that point I knew I was going to be fired. I knew I had broken the rule,” Lopez told CNN. “In those cases, we are supposed to call 911 and hope they get there in time.”

But, he ran and saved the man anyway just to be fired from his job.  Jeff Ellis Management offered him his job back later, but the offer was a dollar short and a day late.  Lopez chose not to return to the management company and it sounds like for good reason.

The decision to terminate his position after saving a life should’ve never resulted in a termination.  He’s obviously a smart young man that could discern that if he worked for a company that would allow him to be fired because of this type of offense that it wasn’t a great company to work for.

But, the city of Hallandale would not let Lopez go away quietly into the night.  They wanted to show their appreciation for his heroic actions by giving him the key to the city.  And not only did he get the key during Monday’s ceremony, he also got to meet the man he saved:

“I would like to say a big thanks to this man. He saved my life,” said Maksim Samartsev, 21, shaking Lopez’s hand and smiling.

Check him out.  Hats off to Lopez!

-J.C. Brooks