EMT firefighter Joseph Solecki is back on the front lines with the Irving Fire Department after the battle of his life.
For 500 days, Solecki had COVID-19 and it was a battle that nearly cost him everything.
“Just amazing, it’s actually nothing short of a miracle,” said Capt. Jeff Judd, with the IFD.
Judd said he and several other firefighters caught COVID-19 shortly after treating a patient with the virus in July 2021. Several became very ill, but no one was hit as fast and as hard as Solecki.
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“It was very shocking to see how quickly he deteriorated. Being a healthy guy as he was to being in the hospital in a coma,” said IFD driver Richard Estes, who is also the secretary of the local union.
Solecki’s firefighter "brothers" in Irving, Bryan-College Station, Houston and Brazos County rallied around his family.
Solecki said his condition worsened before treatments helped him improve. At one point, doctors recommended he reconsider his lifelong career.
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“They were unsure I would get my respiratory capacity back,” he said.
Solecki said he is still working through some neurological issues in his arm, has lost some strength and has some headaches, but that he has been cleared to return to duty full-time. As of Wednesday, Solecki has completed three shifts and training.
He expressed gratitude to the medical team that cared for him, his family and the fire departments and firefighters across the state that stepped up to help him through.
He’s especially thankful to return to the life of service he’s always wanted.
“I was the kid that every Halloween I was the fireman,” he said. “It was something I was raised in, born into and I couldn’t imagine not being around here anymore.”
