A “miracle’’ Long Island cop who survived a stabbing two years ago — and was severely injured in a car chase with a boozed-up suspect earlier this month — was released from the hospital Monday to wild applause.
Suffolk County Officer Brendon Gallagher, a former Army veteran who spent “45 minutes bleeding out” after the crash earlier this month, was all smiles when he was wheeled from Stony Brook University Hospital as a sea of blue cheered and bagpipes played.
“When he came in, he was in stage four shock, which is the worst type of shock. He was done,” said Stony Brook’s head of trauma, Dr. James Vosswinkel.
“He spent nine days on life support after that. … He’s been working like a champ, working really, really aggressively to get better,” the doctor said. “The word miracle, miraculous, sometimes is overstated. It is not in this case.”
This is the second time Gallagher was injured on the job during his three-year tenure. In 2022, he was stabbed in the chest — through his bulletproof vest — while trying to subdue an unhinged man, according to the department.
The relentless wounded warrior left the hospital Monday after his crash recovery accompanied by his father, Michael Gallagher, a retired corrections officer, and his mom, Robin Gallagher, of North Babylon — and wearing a special “Gallagher strong” sweatshirt with a logo featuring his signature burly mustache over a police badge.
The family was escorted home by at least 30 motorcycle cops from Suffolk and Nassau counties.
Gallagher, part of the department’s street task force, put his life on the line when attempting to stop a Ford Mustang driver high on drugs in Brentwood around exit 55 on the Long Island Expressway on Jan. 5, according to the Suffolk County Police Department.
The driver, identified by Newsday as 29-year-old Brentwood resident Cody Fisher, lost control of his vehicle and sideswiped Gallagher’s squad car, causing it to overturn around 6:10 p.m.
Gallagher was so badly hurt that a helicopter had to land on the roadway and airlift him to the hospital.
His abdominal muscles and skin were “completely lacerated open,” likely from the vehicle’s steering wheel, according to Vosswinkel. The doctor noted the policeman had also been suffering from nerve damage in his legs and may need abdominal reconstructive surgery.
“But he is in great spirits, he’s a fighter. If someone is going to have a full recovery, Brendon is,” the doctor said. “I couldn’t stop him from doing physical therapy. He is an incredibly strong individual.”
Suffolk police union President Louis Civello expressed ire as to why Gallagher’s life was put at risk in the first place.
He said the suspect was zooming close to 100 miles an hour, was also drinking, did not have a driver’s license and was involved in a previous road-rage-related weapons charge.