Five years later and it hasn’t gotten any better for those mourning the loss of tow truck driver Roger Perez-Borroto.

Flashing lights and flags waved on the side of the side of the Howard Frankland Bridge in honor of a man who’s remembered as a hero. 

Roger’s sister, Yelitza Perez-Borroto told Spectrum Bay News 9, “He was a great brother, a great father, great uncle and he was just a people’s person.”

She recalled the night of February 15, 2016, very well. 

“When I got the phone call,” she said, "I was at work and my sister called me telling me Roger got killed, and I’m like, 'What?' I didn’t even tell my boss, my supervisor, nobody knew, I just packed up my stuff and left.”

Like every tow truck driver is trained to do, Roger pulled off to the side of the road that night to help someone in need, not knowing it would be his last assist. 

Nationwide Towing's Ginger Darling said, “Roger was the first tow truck operator hit and killed in the line of duty in 2016, right up there on the bridge. He had stopped to help some people. They didn’t wave him down, they didn’t call him, he just stopped out of the goodness of his heart.”

The law in Florida requires drivers to safely move over for law enforcement and emergency vehicles. Yelitza said had that been administered that night, her older brother and best friend would be more than just this picture on the side of the highway.

Perez-Borroto added, “I can feel his presence but it just hurts, it hurts.”

Darling describes the tow truck family as a brotherhood and on every February, they gather to remember Roger and remind every one of the law that could’ve saved his life. 

According to the CDC, tow truck driving is one of the most deadly jobs in the country.