All Officer James Wilcher and a friend planned to do on his day off was catch a lot of fish and enjoy themselves, but fate had other plans. The off-duty Tampa Police officer was out on a boat with his buddy when they witnessed a man jump off the Gandy Bridge and they were able to save his life.
Wilcher and Chip Roberts were set up in their fishing boat near the bridge when they spotted the guy standing near the edge of it while talking to police. Then the man jumped off, landing in the water nearby. Wilcher and Roberts found him, pulled him out of the water and secured him until authorities arrived. Police say if these fishing buddies hadn’t been close by, it could’ve turned into a recovery mission instead of a rescue.
"I'm just thankful fate put us in the right spot at the right time, because that bridge is long and we were the only boat out there today,” Roberts says, “And for us to just be in the right spot where he jumped in was just amazing.”