The Brief

GLOBE, Ariz. - The surgeon who helped save a Globe teen's arm and hand after the teen was badly injured during the historic floodwaters said he's seen cases like Tim's before, but very rarely, and not always with a successful outcome.

It's a story with layers of heroism, starting with Tim's own actions.

The backstory:

When Tim Mellema arrived by medical helicopter at Phoenix Children's Hospital in September, Dr. Reuben Bueno, a hand and reconstructive surgeon at the hospital, said his condition was severe.

"When I first saw him, he had no blood flow going to his hand and to his arm," Bueno said.

Tim had severed an artery in his arm after punching through a glass window in his home in Globe in order to save himself and his parents from rapidly rising floodwaters.

Dr. Bu

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