Trooper talks about man he saved before car hit him

A round of applause greeted Mithil Patel at a news conference Friday as the heroic Florida Highway Patrol trooper was praised for saving another man’s life at the scene of a car crash on Interstate 95 near Hobe Sound.

“Thank you very, very much, and we are not friends, we are family,” said Rony Bottex, the man saved by Patel.

Patel’s scary ordeal went viral. WPEC-CBS12 news crews captured the exclusive video showing an outof-control car hitting Patel Monday morning.

Seconds before getting hit, Patel shoved Bottex, a Port St. Lucie grandfather, out of the way of the spinning car, potentially saving his life. His daughter spoke of Patel’s heroic efforts while in tears.

“If it wasn’t for you being there that day, my father wouldn’t be here,” said Marilyn Bottex Wallace in tears Friday morning, three days after her father left St. Mary’s Medical Center.

Patel’s wife called it a miracle that he didn’t break any bones.

Patel thanked everyone from law enforcement to the first people on scene to help him.

“As well as the tow truck driver who ran up and was the first one to see me do an Olympic-style roll,” Patel joked. “I didn’t land perfect unfortunately. I didn’t get a 10. I got a zero on that one. Guess I have to practice at home.”

Patel said the viral video, which received nearly 7 million views Monday, helped fill in the blanks from that frightening moment.

“Just one thing, send me another copy of all of it so I can frame it,” Patel said. WPEC-CBS12 in a news partner of the South Florida Sun Sentinel

WPEC-CBS12/COURTESY Trooper Mithil Patel, 31, speaks at a news conference about the motorist he pushed out of harm’s way at a crash scene.