We all know the sound of a garbage truck driving around in the mornings every week to pick up the communal trash. If one were to ask about a kid’s day, they wouldn’t expect them to answer about how they were almost squished to death. On a regular day for Elias Quezada, he hopped into a trash can and did not expect what was going to happen next.
During the time Elias had been hiding, his grandmother could not act fast enough for it had happened all too quickly. Carmen Salazar, grandmother, tells WFLA: “In a minute, he went out and the next thing I hear is the sound of the truck and a guy screaming.” Luckily, the boy only suffered through a minor cut — possibly a traumatic experience with necessary household item.
In the last moment, an eagle-eyed sanitation worker saved Elias Quezada, a 7-year-old boy who attempted to hide in a trash can was picked up by an ongoing garbage truck. Fortunately, he did not face a tragedy, as it had been avoided from being rescued.
Elias tells WFLA, NBC station in Tampa, “I don’t like trash cans anymore.. Unless it’s like a tiny trash can that’s inside the house, then it might be fine. I was thinking, “This might be the end for me. I almost thought I was gonna be a mashed potato.”
The rescue had begun with the exquisite vision of driver Waldo Fidele, spotting the boy in the surveillance camera of the truck — rushing to turn off the blades in order to save him. Afterwards, he had contacted 911 for help.
Ken Suarez, a member of FOX 13, uploaded a tweet with the saviour and Elias in front of the garbage truck: “New best buddies. How the driver of a garbage truck saved a seven year old boys life seconds before he could have been crushed to death. Tonight.”
Replaced!