A good Samaritan in Hillsborough county was honored for saving a 16-year-old's life.

  • Franklin Fort saluted for his actions after April crash
  • Emily McDarby's car flipped, landed in water
  • Her father is deputy with Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office

The teen flipped her car into a pond on rural McIntosh Road in April. The hero jumped into the water to pull her out.

Emily McDarby teared up as she remembered the crash.

"I didn't know if I was going to get out," McDarby said.

She was trapped inside the car until she had some hope.

"And then I was saw the door open. It was pretty great," she said.

Pulling her to safety was Franklin Fort, a passerby who saw the crash and leaped to action.

"I saw the car flip, and I didn't think about what I did," Fort said.

Fort was honored Wednesday afternoon by the Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office. And he was also thanked once again by Emily's family, including her father, John McDarby who is a deputy with the Sheriff's Office.

"It was very brave what he did," John McDarby said. "A lot of people don't stop, they see things like that. He stopped, put himself in harm's way, jumped in and made his way around the car and was able to locate her and pull her to safety. Means the world to me that he saved her."

Emily McDarby said she owes Fort her life and will never forget what he did for her.

"I'm glad he got recognized for it, to show there are still some great people in this world," she said.