A Plano police officer says training in autism communication helped him rescue a 4-year-old special needs child who ended up chest-deep in a creek Friday evening.
The boy's mother said she was packing up their apartment for a move when she realized her son, Rowan, slipped out the front door.
Jessica Zelaya called 911 and told officers her son has autism, is non-verbal and fascinated with water -- though he is not yet a strong swimmer.
"He had just started swimming a few days before," Zelaya said.
Officer T.J. Brantley was one of the officers who helped search the nearby woods when he heard the child crying.
"I walked over and heard him yelling," Brantley said. "I looked over and there's a drop off and he was about chest deep in water."
Brantley said the position looked precarious. The child was steps away from deeper water, soaking wet and scared.
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"He was covering his ears and screaming when he saw me and she'd mentioned he might run when he sees other people," Brantley said.
He said his training in autism communication informed his strategy as he scaled the steep embankment to make his way to Rowan.
"I was able to try to talk to him softly, get him to understand I'm not there to hurt him," Brantley explained.
Brantley pulled Rowan out of the water and carried him back up the embankment to his mom.
"He looked at me and immediately started reaching for me and crying, 'Mama, mama,'" Zelaya said. "I was just so, so happy to see he's OK and also shocked to find out he had been so deep in the creek."
Zelaya describes her son as an adventurer. She said she believed Brantley saved Rowan's life.
"He, for sure, would have drowned," Zelaya said. "The water was so high on him already, I don't think that he would have been OK for very much longer."
"If it wasn't for them, I wouldn't have my son today."
