A TRAINEE police officer, just two weeks into her training at Warrington, pulled a trapped driver from a burning car, earning a commendation for bravery.
Karina Pritchard was a trainee at the Warrington campus of Chester University and was off duty when she came across the road traffic accident on the A49 on evening in June.
She found an overturned car with a passenger still inside, trapped around the steering column.
After calling emergency services, Karina, along with a lorry driver who had also stopped, noticed a fire start under the bonnet of the car and took the decision to bravely reach into the vehicle to free the woman driver and pull her clear.
Karina said: “It’s not something you stop to think about. We had wanted to leave her in position until the emergency services arrived to access the situation, but as soon as I saw the flames I knew we had to get her out.
“I had basic first aid training as I was a Special Constable before choosing to go into policing full-time, but I hadn’t had any training to deal with this particular kind of incident.”
Typically, Karina did not make a fuss about the incident and continued on with her course.
Now at the end of the initial six months of her training, she attended the “passing out” ceremony along with the rest of her peers, and it was there she was presented with the award.
She said: “I hadn’t heard anything since the time of the accident. The day after it I asked my trainers on the course if I needed to do anything more. I wrote a pocket notebook entry to say what I had found and what I had done, and then heard nothing more. It was a real surprise and honour to receive the commendation.”
Sergeant Philip Knight, one of the trainers on the policing course, paid tribute to Karina for her swift actions.
He said: “She showed tremendous bravery and her swift actions potentially saved someone’s life. It was pure instinct that took over, and it’s those qualities that will make her into a fine police officer.”
Picture: Karina receives her commendation from Assistant Chief Constable Phil Thompson.
Bravery award for rookie PC
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About Author
Gary Skentelbery
Experienced journalist for more than 40 years. Managing Director of magazine publishing group with three in-house titles and on-line daily newspaper for Warrington. Experienced writer, photographer, PR consultant and media expert having written for local, regional and national newspapers. Specialties: PR, media, social networking, photographer, networking, advertising, sales, media crisis management. Chair of Warrington Healthwatch Director Warrington Chamber of Commerce Patron Tim Parry Johnathan Ball Foundation for Peace. Trustee Warrington Disability Partnership. Former Chairman of Warrington Town FC.
