Fla. Firefighter With Broken Neck Defies The Odds

Jan. 23--MIRAMAR -- They said he'd be lucky to be alive. To breathe on his own. To walk again.

And yet Derek Avilez, the Hollywood firefighter who suffered a paralyzing fall while skimboarding at the beach, is defying the odds.

Avilez will return to work on Monday, more than 15 months after breaking his neck at the C-2 vertebra on Sept. 30, 2010. Not ready for the firetruck yet, he'll work light duty for Fire Chief Virgil Fernandez.

"It's a miracle," said Avilez, 33, a father of three whose progress after such a severe spinal cord injury has amazed doctors.

Dr. Greg Zorman, chief of neurosurgery at Memorial Healthcare System, said it's possible Avilez may one day return to firefighting.

"I wouldn't rule anything out with this patient," Zorman said. "He's come so far so fast, the sky's the limit."

The day after the accident, Avilez underwent six hours of surgery at Memorial Regional Hospital in Hollywood to fuse his neck and stabilize his spinal column.

"Most people would not have made the recovery he's made," Zorman said. "I wouldn't be surprised if he didn't have some help from up above."

Avilez attributes his progress to a higher power.

"It's all God," he said from his Miramar home, now retrofitted for a wheelchair. "God is good. I'm so blessed."

Avilez was ready to breathe on his own in March.

"The doctor couldn't believe I was off the ventilator," he said.

Before the accident, Avilez weighed 195 pounds -- healthy for his 5-foot-11 frame. He has since dropped to 148 pounds but is slowly regaining his strength.

After months of physical therapy, Avilez is able to take a few steps with his wife, Priscilla, by his side.

"I don't call it walking," Avilez said. "It's kind of like a robot. I take a step and then catch my balance."

Avilez, a Hollywood firefighter since June 2006, has inspired the entire department with how far he's come, said Fire-Rescue Lt. Diana DeAbreu.

"Am I shocked? Yes," she said. "But if anyone could do it, it's him. He's got a long road to recovery. It might take a few years, but I think he's going to do it."

The chief is in his corner too.

"There is no doubt that if he continues to work on his rehab, that one day I think we'll see him get on a firetruck again," Fernandez said.

That's the plan, Avilez says.