A ‘hero’ McDonald’s employee stabbed his colleagues who were defending

The Harlem McDonald’s worker brutally stabbed by a knife-wielding customer has been hailed a ‘hero’ after he tried to fend off his assailant with nothing but a plastic cleaning pole, his boss told the Post.

Seriously injured Angel Miguel Salazar, 31, is currently recovering in hospital after being stabbed in the face, back and arm in Wednesday’s frantic attack on the fast food joint.

The Bronx resident, who had to be placed in a medically induced coma after the bloody attack, was ambushed by the angry customer as he tried to protect his two female colleagues, the store manager said, Jennifer Bisla Rodriguez.

“He’s a hero because not everyone would do that. Not everyone would see their colleagues in danger and step in,” Rodriguez told the Post.

Salazar’s younger sister, Miguelina Salazar, said her traumatized brother would not speak to a reporter about the attack because he believed he had done what any man would do.

“He said to me, ‘No, no, I’m not a hero. I did the right thing. I stood up for my colleagues. Any man, in this situation, a real man , would do that. He’s very friendly and humble,” Miguelina told the Post.

Salazar was back in the kitchen preparing food when the bearded suspect entered the restaurant around 12:40 p.m. and immediately went crazy after being asked to order at a kiosk instead of the counter, his boss said.

He fled after hearing the suspect tell the shift manager and another employee that he was armed with a knife, Rodriguez said.

“He heard and ran to the sink area and got a plastic pole used to clean the grates. He ran past where the angry customer was,” Rodriguez said.

“That’s where the fight started. [The suspect] took out his knife and started stabbing him several times.

She added: “It was a terrible attack. It was a bloody attack. Everyone was afraid. They were crying… They were traumatized.

Salazar lost consciousness at the scene before being rushed to Harlem Hospital, where he underwent hours-long surgery.

He was brought out of his induced coma later on Wednesday but is still not fully using his left hand, his boss said.

“I’m surprised he put his life in danger, knowing that the guy had a knife. I would have thought twice. But I’m not surprised because he cares about the people around him,” Rodriguez said.

Salazar’s assailant, who cops say was between 5ft 11ft and 6ft tall and was last seen wearing a dark green jacket and ski mask, took off immediately after the attack.

By Friday morning, no arrests had been made.

The Mickey D knife attack happened about a block from Burger King, where 19-year-old worker Krystal Bayron-Nieves was shot by a suspected thief in January.