Good Samaritan Saves Man After Car Crash Sent SUV Into Pond
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NORTHEAST MIAMI-DADE (CBSMiami) - A Good Samaritan who says "I had to help" is speaking out after rescuing a man whose SUV had plunged into a pond.
He is also sharing cell phone video with CBS4 that he took of the man who he rescued Friday afternoon at Oak Grove Park in Northeast Miami-Dade.
"I had to help. Anybody would help," said 56-year-Old Alex Lemaire in an exclusive interview with CBS4's Peter D'Oench.
CLICK HERE To Watch Peter D'Oench's Report
Lemaire said he acted swiftly when he saw an accident on N.E. 6th Avenue near N.E. 159th Street.
The accident involved the SUV and a white car that overturned.
The unidentified man in the white car was rushed to the Ryder Trauma Center in critical condition, according to Miami-Dade Police. The other unidentified man who Lemaire rescued was also transported.
"I was right there and I saw the car flipping in the water," said Lemaire.
"When I get there the guy was still in the car and the car could have caught on fire and anything so I just walked in the water and picked him and walked out with him."
"What were you thinking when you saw the car go in the water?" asked D'Oench.
"Save a life, that's all," he said. "That's all it is. I was just trying to save his life and I did."
Lemaire came to the U.S. from Haiti 36-years ago and says he has always tried to help people. He is a religious man.
"Why was it so important to you to save a life?" asked D'Oench.
"In the name of God," he said. "I did it in the name of God. I didn't think about anything else, just helping him out."
"What sort of shape was the man in?" asked D'Oench.
"He was not bad," he said. "He said my back, my face, everything hurts. I just pulled him out."
"I just had to help," he said. "Anybody would help. I would do it again."
Lemaire said he would like to see the man who he rescued after he is released from Jackson Memorial Hospital.
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