A Suwanee man, 74, who is an insulin-dependent diabetic, is recovering after police discovered him lying face down in a creek bed near his home early Wednesday morning.
The man's wife called police when her husband had not returned home.
"It had been about two hours," said Cpt. Cass Mooney in a phone interview.
Officer Clint Latham was the one who found the man in the creek bed —breathing but unresponsive — and radioed for help, according to a press release.
"He was cold ... He had had some sort of diabetic attack," said Mooney.
Another officer, Cpl. Simon Byun, came to the scene and helped carry the victim to his backyard, where emergency responders were waiting.
“I was happy to help, and glad it came to a happy ending,” said Latham. “It’s part of the job.”
Mooney said the man was treated at the scene and initially refused to be taken to the hospital, but went later at his wife's insistence. He's expected to make a full recovery.
"We were just lucky that the officers acted quickly and were able to locate him. With his age, being exposed to the elements, being in the cold water of the creek — if we hadn't found him he very well could have died," said Mooney.
He added that this story can serve as a reminder for general safety tips everybody should employ, tips that likely saved this man's life.
Mooney said if you plan on going for a walk alone — or anywhere alone, for that matter — you should tell somebody where you're going, how you're getting there and when you'll be back.
The man pulled from the creek had told his wife where he would be walking, and when he would likely be back. Without that information, his wife may not have called police in the first place.
"Nowadays there are plenty of (smart phone) applications that you can take with you that'll let people know: 'If I'm not back in time, this is my last location'," said Mooney. "Some of them let you hit a panic button."
