Humberside Traffic Police are now training again, could this be the future, please let it be:
mega link (hidden by SS)
BEHIND THE WHEEL AND IN PURSUIT
12:30 - 28 January 2005
Humberside Police has reintroduced its high-speed pursuit policy, and highly-trained officers again mean business on North East Lincolnshire's roads. Grimsby Telegraph crime reporter PHILLIP NORTON spent time with them during their training.
The breath of 12 police officers lingers on the crisp, freezing morning air. It is 9am at the Humberside Police training centre in Hull, and the huddle of men and women in bright yellow jackets are avidly listening to instructions. A fleet of Volvo police response cars purr in the background, engines running in readiness.
We pull onto a busy road still crowded at the tail end of rush hour. Traffic is almost at a standstill.
Then, normality is shattered - sirens blare, lights start to flash and, as if by magic, a route clears ahead of us.
My lower back is sucked into the seat. I peek over the driver's shoulder as the speedometer needle rapidly ticks off 50, 60, 70mph in a matter of seconds.
We reach clearer roads, the scenery starts to fly by. The engine's purr turns to a growl as the specialised tyres devour the miles.
The needle passes 120, 130, 140mph as we head down the outside lane of the M62. Cars dart aside to evade the whirlwind I am part of.
Yet inside, everything is calm as the next tasks are discussed, the driver calmly scanning the way ahead.
At the wheel is Sgt Robin Cowles, practising his response driving.
In the passenger seat is fellow "student" and Grimsby officer, Pc Mel Rand, while instructor Pc Andy Homan accompanies me in the back.
It is the start of the third day of the latest course in pursuit driving for officers from the Humberside force area.
As previously reported, a lack of properly-trained officers led to the scrapping of high-speed pursuits by the force.
But intensive training and a new roads crime unit means the police are again getting tough with motorist who flout the law.
The previous days had been spent in the classroom and on a private airfield, teaching officers rules and regulations, techniques and tactics.
Today was the day they ventured onto the roads to hone their skills and tactics in the testing arena of the motorway.
We park up on a slip road on the M62. We receive a report of a stolen silver Ford Mondeo over the radio. It is being followed by a police car and has refused to stop.
Safety calls are made - weather, visibility, traffic conditions - before clearance is given for a pursuit as it joins the motorway.
"Move out, move out."
It was our cue to launch into the three lanes of traffic. With two other police cars, traffic is slowed down to around 20mph as a response car takes its position in each lane. A huge convoy of cars and lorries builds up behind us.
The tactic creates a clear area of road, called a sterile area, for a box manoeuvre. As the traffic in front of the road block disappears into the distance, I see a Mondeo winding in and out of the traffic behind, working through the jam.
As it approaches the front of the traffic, the signal is given by a following police car and we accelerate forward.
The Mondeo swerves across the now open carriageway, its driver confronted by a fleet of police cars which all home in on him.
Within seconds, there is a police car on all sides of the stolen car. Radio calls and expert teamwork between the officers in all the vehicles bring them within inches of each other at high speed.
Then everyone starts to slow down, forcing the boxed-in Mondeo driver to a stop.
He wasn't arrested - the Mondeo man was a skilled instructor, and the whole incident was the first of many practice exercises that day.
It was just as you see on TV - like Police Camera Action. Yet inside the car, I felt safe, the vehicle felt controlled. Not once did I reach for that imaginary brake pedal - a tribute to the man behind the wheel.
After a debrief, we were out on the road again, to perform another box-in manoeuvre, with Pc Rand, of Grimsby North Local Policing Team, in the driver's seat.
After expertly performing the move, he explained why pursuits were so important.
"In areas of Grimsby there are problems with stolen cars, so this training is good and will help curtail that," he said.
"Those responsible are going to know now that the police are able to bring these people to a safe stop, arrested and put in front of a court."
And that is the message the whole force is putting out.
While there will always be people who say it is dangerous to follow criminals at high speed, in the few hours I spent with these drivers, I learned that no matter how fast, how wild the situation or how frightened they may be, their training means they have the ability to remain firmly in control.
FIVE Grimsby men who were arrested following a police pursuit in the early hours of yesterday have been charged.
Dean Bellamy (19), of Wintringham Road, an 18-year-old and two 17-year-olds - who cannot be named for legal reasons - were each charged with non-dwelling burglary and two thefts from a motor vehicle.
Another 17-year-old was charged with the same three offences as well as dangerous driving, driving otherwise in accordance with a licence and having no insurance.
Bellamy and the 17-year-olds were kept in custody, and the 18-year-old released on bail.
All five were due to appear before Scunthorpe Magis trates' Court today.
Login
Register
FAQ
Search
Members
