PINELLAS PARK – A Pinellas Park police officer was credited with saving the life of a woman who attempted to jump off the Skyway Bridge.
The Florida Highway Patrol reported that officer Joseph S. Puglia, a 10-year police veteran, was driving southbound across the bridge between Pinellas and Manatee counties on Dec. 20 at about 5 p.m. when he observed a 55-year-old woman standing near the ledge.
The FHP said Puglia, who also is a field training officer, pulled over and made contact with the would-be jumper as the FHP arrived on the scene.
Authorities said Puglia befriended the woman and she was pulled to safety and transported to a local hospital for observation.