Merced man honored for saving pilot’s life

Jeffrey Saechao pulled a man from a fiery helicopter crash, knowing he was risking his own life for a stranger.

“We got up to him and could see he was still moving around, still breathing, so we took the chance. It was a split-second decision,” Saechao told the Sun-Star on Monday.

Saechao, 33, pulled 44-year-old Bryan Cantrell from the burning wreckage July 18 after Cantrell’s crop-dusting helicopter went down in a watermelon field close to Lopes Avenue and Thornton Road, near the Merced Regional Airport.

The Merced County Sheriff’s Department on Monday presented Saechao with the office’s Lifesaving Medal, the first time the honor has been bestowed on a civilian in the county’s history, according to Sheriff Vern Warnke.

“To my knowledge, it’s only been given to deputies who’ve saved lives in emergencies,” Warnke told the Sun-Star. “You expect deputies to behave that way, but you usually don’t expect that from the average citizen.”

Cantrell and his family were on hand to watch Warnke and Undersheriff Tom Cavallero bestow the honor to one of the two men who saved his life.

Saechao and Johnny Garcez, 50, of Merced, were the only two people in the area when the helicopter crashed into the field and both men rushed to help. Garcez could not be at Monday’s ceremony, but Sgt. Delray Shelton confirmed deputies intended to present the same award to Garcez in the future.

“When I (later) saw the wreckage, I couldn’t believe I came out of that,” Cantrell said. “They got me out before I got burned.”

Cantrell is a teacher in Stockton who flies a cropdusting helicopter part-time to supplement his income and because he loves to fly.

He was spraying a Merced cornfield that Friday morning last summer when his helicopter struck a guide wire, tumbled out of the sky, slammed into the watermelon patch and burst into flames.

The last thing Cantrell remembers is hitting the wire. The National Transportation Safety Board lists that as the probable cause of the crash.

Saechao was inside his home with his 5-year-old daughter and 12-year-old son when he heard “a loud snapping sound.”

“I went outside and saw it on fire and started walking toward it,” Saechao explained. “I was filming it with my phone, and when I got close, I saw there was still someone in there and put my phone away.”

Saechao saw Cantrell was still breathing. In interviews with media on Monday, Saechao acknowledged thinking of his own children before moving toward the downed helicopter.

“It’s what everyone teaches their kids and if I’m in need of help, I’d hope others would help me,” Saechao said of the hurried decision that forever changed the lives of the Cantrell family.

Saechao and Garcez unbuckled the unconscious pilot and dragged him into the field to safety.

Cantrell said many of the bones on his left side were “shattered.” He also suffered head injuries which continue to affect his vision and was in a medically induced coma for about 45 days. There are significant portions of the last six months of which Cantrell has no memory.

“It was a terrible event, a terrible day,” Warnke said. “But it could’ve been much, much worse if it hadn’t been for people like (Saechao and Garcez).”

Monday marked the first time Cantrell and Saechao had seen one another since the crash. “To see him here, walking around and talking now, it’s really comforting,” Saechao said.

“I’m so lucky, super lucky,” Cantrell said. “It’s amazing that I’m here, and they’re the reason that I’m here; that my kids didn’t lose their dad.”

This story was originally published February 2, 2015 at 8:08 PM with the headline "Merced man honored for saving pilot’s life."