Bedfordshire officers scoop South Eastern regional Police Bravery award
09 July 2010
Two heroic officers from Bedfordshire have tonight received the South Eastern regional award at the 15th annual Police Bravery Awards in London, organised by the Police Federation of England and Wales and The Sun Newspaper.
The officers received the award at a glittering award ceremony at The Dorchester Hotel which followed a reception at 10 Downing Street where they, and 56 other nominees, met the Prime Minister, David Cameron and Home Secretary, Theresa May.
In the early hours of an October morning officers in Bedfordshire were tipped off about a string of burglaries taking place at that time in the village of Marston. While some officers were sent to the scene and some directed to close off exit routes, two of the burglars escaped by car and two ran away from the scene on foot.
PC Jenny Liddell, a roads policing officer, and PC Gary Walker, a dog handler from the local area, were two of the officers sent to the scene. From her position at one of the exit routes, PC Jenny Liddell spotted a car careering away at high speed and decided to investigate. As she pulled away in her vehicle she was surprised to see no car on the road ahead but instead saw smoke billowing from a near by thicket.
PC Liddell pulled her car over and was joined by the duty sergeant. They made their way down the verge and soon came across the vehicle in flames. They could see one man lying near the vehicle but also another still trapped inside. Regardless of the imminent danger of explosion PC Liddell and PC Walker, who was on scene by this time, approached the burning car and pulled the man they could reach to safety.
Despite the ferocity of the fire and the impending explosion, the officers considered whether they could still reach the man trapped in the car. Seconds later the vehicle exploded and was engulfed in flames. Unfortunately the male trapped in the vehicle was unable to be rescued and died as a result of the multiple injuries received in the collision.
Paul McKeever, chairman of the Police Federation of England and Wales says:
“These officers deserve the highest praise for acting selflessly to rescue the man from the blazing car. Their team work and courage are an example to us all. We hope this award goes some way towards recognising their heroic actions.”
Editor of The Sun Newspaper Dominic Mohan says:
PCs Liddell and Walker were clearly facing an extremely dangerous situation and showed selfless bravery to save the life of a man in a blazing vehicle. Both officers are a great credit to their force and it is an honour for us to be able to pay tribute to them with this bravery award.”
ENDS
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