A Delta police officer says he is lucky to be alive after being stabbed three times while trying to break up what appeared to be a violent domestic dispute outside an elementary school.
Sgt. John Jasmins was off duty and waiting to pick up his kids from Conception Elementary School on 119 Street when he saw a fight between a man and woman.
WATCH: (Aired Feb. 21, 2019) Delta elementary school closed Thursday after stabbing
He tried to get between them and de-escalate the situation when he was stabbed three times, once in the hip and twice in the ribs.
“One hit an actual rib so it didn’t penetrate that deep,” Jasmins said. “The second one went through my diaphragm — it hit an artery.”
Jasmins said doctors told him it could have been much worse.
He notes that he was also stabbed in the hip, saying the knife “slid along the inside of my hip and basically filleted the meat off the bone. There’s a large hematoma there.”
He managed to hang onto the man until first responders arrived and took him into custody.
“Other than losing a lot of blood … I am very fortunate,” Jasmins said.
Once the situation was under control, Jasmins said his first thought was of his kids, who saw what took place.
WATCH: (Aired Feb. 21, 2019) Delta police give update on stabbing outside elementary school
“My concern is that I didn’t want my kids to see me like that,” he said, adding that a teacher and another parent took his kids inside the school as first responders tended to his injuries.
Forty-nine-year-old Manoj George was taken into custody and is now facing a string of charges, including attempted murder, sex assault with a weapon and extortion and uttering threats.
A woman was also injured in the incident. Delta police said at the time that the suspect and female victim were known to each other.
Jasmins needed surgery and is still doing rehab work on his hip and abdomen. He hopes to be back on the beat in the near future.
He is now taking part in Sirens for Life, a competition between teams of first responders to see who can donate the most blood to Canadian Blood Services.
Jasmins understands the need for blood donations all too well.
He said he needed six units of blood transfused after being stabbed. A year-and-a-half ago, he needed four blood transfusions following surgery to deal with an aortic aneurysm.
“I wouldn’t be here without those donations,” he said.