Crash victim reunited with cop who rescued her four decades earlier
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AWIDNES woman has been reunited with the former police officer who rescued her from a crushed car in a serious crash in the town more than 40 years ago.
Mother-of-one and grandmother-of-two Angela Tudor said she will forever be indebted to PC Kevin Milnes for being her ‘guardian angel’ when she suffered multiple broken bones and head injuries as a result of the smash on Dundalk Road on June 9, 1979.
Unbeknown to Angela, Kevin was left paralysed after suffering even more serious injuries after losing control of his police car on a sharp bend during a pursuit in icy and foggy conditions in Great Sankey, Warrington, 10 years later.
Severe brain damage as a result of the incident on October 31, 1989, left him sitting in the car upside down in a ditch for hours before emergency services were made aware of the crash.
Kevin spent several months in hospital, and his injuries forced him to retire from Cheshire Constabulary on September 5, 1990.
His medical problems caused by the crash have escalated over time and he is now paralysed down the left hand side of his body and unable to talk without the aid of a digital device.
Angela became aware of
Kevin’s crash and his disabilities after recognising him on a Widnes police social media post several weeks ago.
She contacted the police community support officer (PCSO) who wrote the post about Kevin being presented with a speechgenerating device donated by the North West Police Benevolent Fund to help him communicate.
PCSO Stephen Marnick arranged for Angela to meet and thank the 69-year-old at the residential care home he lives in.
A Cheshire police spokesman said Kevin initially did not recognise Angela during their reunion in Widnes on Tuesday, November 19, but towards the end of the visit something clicked in his mind and he told Angela that he does remember her crash, even detailing the precise location.
Angela, 63, said: “It was a highly emotional experience meeting Kevin again after all these years.
“He was my guardian angel when I was in a car crash more than 40 years ago.
“I was knocked unconscious when the car I was in as a front seat passenger crashed into a lamp post.
“I sustained a fractured and dislocated ankle and also broke my pelvis and two bones in my leg.
“I woke up thinking that I was going to die, but thankfully Kevin was there to reassure and help me.
“He was so calm and professional and he got me out of the car so that I could be taken to hospital in an ambulance.
“I have never forgotten what he did for me that day, during what was probably the most frightening experience of my life.
“I will be forever indebted to him for it, and I am so pleased that I have been able to see him again and belatedly thank him for being so fantastic during my time of need.
“With him having sustained serious brain damage as a result of his own crash 10 years later, I can’t believe that he remembers my car accident way back in 1979.
“It was a particularly emotional moment when I realised that he remembered my accident, and it was so lovely seeing him again and talking to him.”
Kevin, who is from Oldham and worked as a traffic officer in Widnes, St Helens and Northwich, also enjoyed the reunion.
He said: “I really enjoyed being a police officer, and it is nice thinking back about all the people I helped whilst doing the job, including Angela.”
Kevin was once commended for excellent police work in effecting the arrest of two men in difficult circumstances.
Angela, who worked as a paramedic information assistant at Halton Hospital before retiring, added: “I only found out about Kevin’s crash recently.
“I have a good memory for faces and I instantly recognised him when I saw the post on the Widnes Police Facebook page.
“It is a cruel twist of fate that he was involved in such a serious crash 10 years after helping me when I had mine.
“I just hope that Kevin had a guardian angel of his own after his crash.
“Both crashes occurred on a sharp bend, which is one of many hazards that people face every time they drive.
“We all know that cars are deadly weapons, but it is only when you are involved in a crash yourself that you truly realise the importance of driving carefully and safely at all times.
“A split second on the roads can change your life and the lives of others forever.
“Thankfully I was able to fully recover from my crash and go on to become a mum and a grandmother.
“Many other people involved in crashes are not so lucky.”
More than twice as many people (46) died on Cheshire’s roads and motorways last year than they did in 2017.
So far this year 32 victims have died on Cheshire’s roads and motorways.
In May Cheshire Constabulary launched its Fatal 5 campaign to highlight the five main causes of serious collisions.
They are careless driving, speeding, driving distracted while using a mobile phone, drink or drug driving and not wearing a seatbelt.