FHP advocates safe driving after trooper is hit in crash on the Cape Coral Bridge

A Florida Highway Patrol trooper is recovering after being hit while at a crash on the Cape Coral Bridge on Sunday.

The driver who hit the trooper didn’t violate move-over laws but was still cited for careless driving.

Whether responding to a crash on a bridge or the interstate, every time a trooper gets out of their cruiser, they risk their lives because traffic never stops, and too often, a driver is just not paying attention.

The trooper hurt in Sunday’s crash is home from the hospital.

The FHP trooper was stopped, waiting for a car to be towed away. That is when crash investigators say a 50-year-old man veered into the lane of the parked FPH cruiser and rear-ended him.

The force of the crash pushed the trooper’s car into the wreck he responded to in the first place.

“If you are traveling on a roadway and you’re approaching that scene, my goodness, don’t hit anybody. Control your car, slow down, do everything that you’re expected to do as a responsible adult behind the wheel of a three-4000 and up pound vehicle,” said Florida Highway Patrol Lieutenant Greg Bueno.

That driver now must answer a careless driving citation but will not face a move-over law violation because the crash took up one of the two lanes of traffic, so there was no other lane for traffic to move over into.

Bueno wants all drivers to be cautious, especially when there’s law enforcement on the side of the road.

“You always have to be 100% focused, aware of your surroundings, looking ahead, trying to, you know, foreshadow or see any obstructions or any traffic congestion or slowdowns so that you can control your vehicle. And at the end of the day, that is your responsibility as a driver,” said Bueno.

There are more than 400,000 car crashes in Florida every year, according to the latest Florida Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles report.