Photo: Witthaya Prasongsin / Moment / Getty Images
A South Carolina deputy with the Oconee County Sheriff's Office is lucky to be alive after getting shot in the head while chasing a suspect on November 16. Corporal Lucas Watts was shot in a remote area of Oconee County, and the closest ambulance was at least 30 minutes away.
Other deputies knew time was of the essence, so they put Watts in a pickup truck and drove him to a nearby fire station. They were met by an ambulance, and Watts was rushed to the hospital, where he was met by his wife and Oconee County Sheriff Mike Crenshaw.
Watts underwent life-saving surgery and remains in stable but critical condition.
On Sunday, Sheriff Crenshaw described the harrowing details while speaking at Westminster First Baptist Church.
"Just so you all understand the significance of his injuries, I'm not talking about a grazing wound to the head," Crenshaw told the congregation, according to WHNS. "I'm talking about a bullet to his brain so that you understand just how significant his injury was. I didn't share that with my folks on the scene; it wasn't the time."
Crenshaw said that Watts' wife got to see him before he was taken into surgery.
"They carried the wife in, and she touches him, and he starts moving," Crenshaw said. "A tear rolls down his face."
Crenshaw said he started praying for Watts and received numerous messages from others who offered their prayers for the injured officer. He credited the outpouring of prayers for helping Watts survive the surgery.
"Folks, I'm here to tell you from the time he got shot to the time his wife touched him, had to be two-and-half, three hours," Crenshaw said. "I saw a dead man come back to life... because of God, and because of intervening prayer, I really believe."
"I don't know what tomorrow holds, but I'm telling you, God performed a miracle Thursday night in Greenville, South Carolina," he added.