Policewoman praised over bridge incident
APOLICE officer has been praised for the ‘calm and composed’ way she helped a woman to safety who was on the wrong side of a motorway bridge in Stockport.
PC Rebekah Marsden was called to the ‘challenging and potentially dangerous situation’ on the bridge over the M60 near junction one last month.
She worked with other officers and emergency services for almost three hours, Greater Manchester Police said.
The ‘vulnerable’ woman was eventually taken to safety. PC Marsden described the situation as ‘difficult’ but said she knew she ‘had to do something’.
“When I arrived, there were already officers at the scene, but the female would not engage with them”, she said. “It was a difficult situation because I’d never dealt with anything like this before and I didn’t know if I was going to say the right thing, but I felt like I had to do something.
“I kept a distance to give the woman some space and asked her why she was there. She slowly started to engage but got upset – I was scared for her, but remembered it wasn’t about me and how I felt.
“A female paramedic came to help and we worked together to get her on the right side of the bridge. I then helped her down and into the back of an ambulance.”
Chief Inspector John Picton praised PC Marsden for her calmness during the incident. He said: “She found herself in a challenging and potentially dangerous situation, but she remained calm and composed.
“Stockport police officers provide an outstanding service to our community, responding to incidents 24 hours a day, frequently facing challenging and dangerous situations. I am extremely proud of our team, the professionalism, dedication and resilience they show shift-byshift, day-by-day.
“They play a significant role in making Stockport a fantastic, safe place to live, work and socialise.”