DORAL, Fla. --
A Doral police officer is alive thanks to a good samaritan and the fact that he was wearing his helmet after he was thrown from his motorcycle, Sunday morning, while on-duty.
Officer Rafael Cubela, 51, was listed in serious but stable condition Sunday after he was airlifted to the Ryder Trauma Center at Jackson Memorial Hospital.
Officer Cubela was traveling south on N.W. 87th Avenue near 30th Street when Doral Police Chief Ricardo Gomez said the driver of a white, Honda Civic, heading north, made an illegal U-turn in front of him.
The turning car caused the officer to crash, according to police.
The force of the impact sent Cubela flying more than 50 feet in the air.
"He never even looked to see if there was an officer or another vehicle, just cut into the path of the motorcycle," said Chief Gomez.
Cubela sustained serious internal injuries, including a collapsed lung, as well as several broken bones.
The driver who made the U-turn stayed on the scene until police arrived and was given a traffic citation.
The unsung hero, said Chief Gomez, is another motorist, a doctor, who stopped to help Officer Cubela.
But that doctor didn't stick around long enough to give officers his name.
Officer Cubela's family and the Chief, would like to 'thank' the doctor for providing, what they believe, was life-saving aid.
Officer Cubela has been with the Doral Police Department for two years, and was previously a police officer with the City of South Miami for close to 20 years.
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