An officer from Suffolk Police was injured during a road traffic collision in Haughley.
The incident occurred shortly after 11 am on Saturday, 10 June, on Haughley New Street.
The officer was on duty, escorting an abnormal load, when his motorcycle collided with a Toyota Yaris.
He was promptly taken to a hospital with injuries, which, fortunately, are not described as life-changing or life-threatening.
The driver of the Yaris escaped unscathed.
The road was temporarily closed to facilitate the investigation into the circumstances surrounding the collision but has since reopened.
This incident serves as a stark reminder of the dangers faced by police officers, particularly those on motorcycles.
Data shows that in the past five years, injuries sustained by police motorcyclists in England & Wales have remained consistently high.
In 2018, there were 147 reported injuries among police motorcyclists.
Over the years, we’ve seen a slight decrease, with 135 reported injuries in 2022, reflecting the ongoing efforts towards ensuring the safety of these officers on our roads.
The nature of these injuries varies greatly, but they primarily stem from road traffic accidents (RTAs), which account for around 70% of all injuries.
Other common causes include falls from motorcycles (20% of all injuries) and assaults (10%).
In some cases, these injuries have been minor, such as cuts and bruises, but in others, they have been more serious, leading to broken bones, head injuries, and in some unfortunate incidents, even fatalities.
However, despite these risks, the utilisation of motorcycles by police forces continues to be essential.
They offer distinct advantages, such as quick response times and the ability to patrol areas difficult to access by car, which overwhelmingly outweighs the inherent risks.
Nevertheless, incidents like the one in Haughley underline the need for continuous efforts in ensuring the safety of our police officers.
They serve as a reminder that every day, these brave men and women put themselves in harm’s way to protect us, often risking their own well-being in the process.
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By definition, abnormal loads are either big, heavy or both. One must wonder what the driver of the Yaris was doing to collide with a motorcycle that is unlikely to have been travelling that fast and would have had all its lights on.
Another police biker hit an old lady while escorting the Princess of Wales, again with full lights. One must wonder at the powers of observation of some people.
Motor cycling, in my experience, represents a significant potential for serious injury to riders in the law enforcement environment. In order to fully assess the ongoing potential in a meaningful way it would be right to compare the current situation against historical data. The number of miles run per annum by solos, the number of motorcycle shifts, and compared with the number of qualified Police Motorcyclists and compared with the overall accident rate by the Force over the period of the comparison. There may be the opportunity to identify a trend, weighted against the number of motorcycle shifts performed. Until that analysis can be performed all we can do is to vet and train officers to ensure the highest standards to perform one of the most necessary of Policing functions.