VOLUSIA COUNTY, Fla. —  A New Smyrna Beach Police Department corporal is recovering today after being shot by an armed man over the weekend.

Corporal Ralph Hunnefeld was shot while he and other officers were trying to arrest a suspect who avoided a traffic stop. He is expected to be released from Halifax Medical Center by today, and should make a full recovery.

Authorities said that law enforcement officers in New Smyrna Beach and Volusia County showed “nothing but courage” on Saturday during an exchange of gunfire left Hunnefeld injured.

During a joint news conference Sunday, Volusia County Sheriff Michael Chitwood described Saturday’s shooting as “harrowing,” and added that what was seen from officers and deputies responding “was nothing but pure heroism.”

The shootout ended in New Smyrna Beach but started as a traffic stop in Port Orange.

According to the Volusia County Sheriff's Office, the incident started at about 4 p.m. when a Port Orange police officer attempted to initiate a traffic stop on a green Lincoln, officials said.

Officials have identified the driver of the Lincoln as 25-year-old Matthew Thomas of Holly Hill.

Police said Thomas was stopped by a K-9 officer who attempted a traffic stop at a known drug location.

Thomas drove off, authorities said, and officers pursued.

Eventually, they ended the chase in New Smyrna at Turnbull Street and Industrial Park Avenue.

At one point, police say Thomas was on the roof of his vehicle.

Cpl. Ralph Hunnefeld is recovering after being shot in the leg. (New Smyrna Beach Police Dept.)

Authorities said as gunshots ensued, Hunnefeld was shot in the leg.

Thomas was shot multiple times and died at the scene.

“He didn’t make it,” New Smyrna Beach Police Chief Mike Coffin said of the suspect. “He made some bad decisions yesterday, and those bad decisions cost his life.

“He [Thomas] had the opportunity on more than one occasion to stop for police in Port Orange…and in New Smyrna, and he did not do that.”

Coffin added there has not been an officer shot in more than two decades in New Smyrna Beach.

"These officers, and the deputy did an outstanding job when faced with a deadly threat," Coffin said. "We all come to work every single day, knowing these like this can happen. You train for it, you prepare for it, you hope it never happens."

The officers and deputy involved have been placed on administrative leave, per protocol, and the shooting is under investigation by the Florida Department of Law Enforcement. 

Hunnefeld joined the New Smyrna Beach Police Department in 2011 after serving in the U.S. Marine Corps.  He has served as a patrol officer and field-training officer.