A Hillsborough County deputy is recovering at home after her patrol vehicle was struck Monday night while she was assisting at a crash scene on Interstate 75. The Florida Highway Patrol is now investigating how the collision happened, and the Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office says the damage to her cruiser shows just how much worse the outcome could have been.
Sheriff Visits Injured Corporal at Tampa General
The deputy has been identified as Corporal Niomi Bruce, according to WFLA. Sheriff Chad Chronister visited her at Tampa General Hospital following the crash and said she was in high spirits despite the ordeal. The sheriff's office also shared photos of the wrecked patrol car on Facebook, saying Bruce is recovering and will soon return to her HCSO family.
Few additional details about the crash itself have been released. It is not yet known who struck the patrol vehicle, what led to the collision, or whether any citations have been issued, and the sheriff's office has not specified the extent of Bruce's injuries beyond confirming she is recovering at home.
A Familiar Danger for Roadside Responders
Incidents like this one are a recurring hazard for Florida's roadside emergency workers. In Brevard County, a driver went between emergency vehicles at a crash scene on Interstate 95 and struck a sheriff's patrol car with a deputy inside, according to a report from cbs12.com. About seven sheriff's vehicles, Florida Highway Patrol units and fire trucks were parked at that scene with emergency lights on and two lanes closed when the crash occurred. The deputy inside the struck patrol car was injured and taken to a hospital by Brevard County Fire Rescue, while another deputy had to run into a ditch to avoid being hit.
Florida's Move Over law requires drivers on a roadway with two or more lanes traveling in the same direction to vacate the lane closest to a roadside emergency vehicle whenever it is safe to do so, under Florida Statutes Section 316.126. A violation of the law is treated as a noncriminal traffic infraction. Despite that legal requirement, failing to move over remains a persistent problem statewide: in 2024 there were 205 crashes and more than 17,500 citations issued for motorists who failed to move over, according to the Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles.
Sheriff's Office Repeats Its Appeal to Drivers
In the wake of Bruce's crash, the Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office is urging drivers to slow down and move over whenever they see flashing roadside lights, whether from a patrol car, fire truck or tow vehicle. The agency has framed the message simply: moving over for roadside emergency vehicles is the law, and it saves lives. For now, Bruce is resting at home as the Florida Highway Patrol continues piecing together exactly what happened on I-75 that night.
