Palm Harbor man sees car crash, saves a life

DUNEDIN, Fla. - Bailey Hartman watched the dark, brown water quickly flow into her sinking car.  She remembered what she learned from the safety videos:  Unbuckle the seatbelt and try not to panic.

"My car nose-dived.  In less than 20 seconds, I was completely submerged," said Bailey, 20, of Largo.

"It crossed my mind that, oh my God, this might be my last breath," she said.  "I needed to say my prayers."

Her answer came driving by the same moment she lost control of her sedan and went sailing over a sidewalk and into a drainage pond at the intersection of Solon Avenue and Belcher Road near Dunedin.

"You see a car swerve out of control, in the air, and then into the water.  I mean right out of the movies," said Daniel Isabelle, 46, who was running errands in his enormous Ford F-650 truck with his son, Daniel Jr.

After jumping the curb, Isabelle told the 13-year old to call 9-1-1, and he dove into the water.  Within seconds, he reached Bailey, and managed to swim her to shore before her car vanished underneath the surface.

"He is my hero right now," Bailey said.  "I just want to thank him for everything he did," she said.

"I don't believe I'm a hero," Isabelle said.  "I saw somebody really needing help who could have lost her life and I just did what I felt I had to do," he said.

Bailey's step-mom, Jennifer Hartman, said when she rushed to the scene she saw countless deputies and sheriff's divers in and around the water.  She feared the worst.  Hartman began tearing up remembering when she found out Bailey was going to be ok.

"My husband and I could be standing here right now telling you that my daughter died yesterday," Hartman said.  "Yet, she's alive and we can look at her and hug her and a lot of parents don't get to do that," she said.

"We're very fortunate."