A police officer in Deer Park, Texas is being praised a hero after a viral video showed him risksing his own life to save his K9 partner, a dog named Roni.

According to KHOU 11, Officer Joel Nitchman Roni was trapped in a patrol car on January 24, 2023, when a tornado struck.

While most people would run away from a tornado and take cover, Officer Nitchman did the opposite and ran straight into the storm to get to his beloved work companion.

He couldn’t, in good conscious, take shelter knowing that K9 Roni was trapped in the car out in the weather.

In the video captured a security system, you can see Officer Nitchman brave the storm to get to the patrol car before going inside and safely retriever K9 Roni. The two then exit the vehcile and struggle to walk indoors as the wind and rain pushes them back.

According to KHOU 11, Officer Nitchman explained:

“I knew it was something bad when things were hitting my face. I knew it was debris of some kind. Once I went around the car, that’s when all heck broke loose. I could barely open his door. When I did, he’s a smart dog, he saw what was going on outside and he said I’m not coming out.”

Thankfully, he did successfully get the pup from the car and to safety. “I love that dog. He’s my hip attachment almost every day of the week. He’s a part of our family. We can’t leave a loved one like that. There’s no way I was going to leave him like that,” he added.

Check out the news segment and viral video below: