A Texas firefighter stabbed at a debris fire last month is on the mend.
Brian Smolik told KAVU he is ready to get back to work, but doesn't know when that will happen.
"We ended up at this fire that ended up being this brush fire that basically went bad," Smolik said of the Aug. 19 blaze.
Smolik, a Yorktown firefighter, said he saw a man burning a couch and other items. As he manned a hose to douse the flames, things escalated.
"He came towards me, and I basically thought he had punched me. One of the other firefighters told me I was bleeding," Smolik told the reporter.
Smolik immediately began to put pressure on his wound, and had other firefighters around him to ensure Kirk Engle wouldn't attack him again.
Paramedics transported him to DeTar Hospital. He was in ICU for a time until an exam showed he wouldn't need surgery. He was released on Aug. 22.
Smolik said he's glad no one else was hurt. While he's anxious to get back to his routines, he's not yet sure when that will happen.
Reports indicate the alleged dispute was aimed at Yorktown Police Chief Paul Campos not Smolik.
Engle remains in jail in lieu of $100,000 bail on charges of assault on a public servant and arson.
