Date: 28-03-24  Time: 16:03 pm

Author Topic: On-duty police officer dies in crash in Southampton  (Read 6927 times)

Grahamm

  • Global Moderator
  • GP Hero
  • *****
  • Posts: 6,656
    • Main bike:
      FZ6 04-06
    • View Profile
    • Affordable Leather Products
On-duty police officer dies in crash in Southampton
« on: 03 April 2013, 11:17:56 pm »
Another reminder that we're all vulnerable on bikes :(

Quote
A police officer riding an unmarked motorbike has been killed in a crash outside a Southampton petrol station. He was on duty at the time, but was not involved in a pursuit or responding to a 999 call, Hampshire Constabulary said.
The officer's police bike collided with a BMW outside the Shell garage on Thomas Lewis Way in Swaythling at about 14:00 BST.
He was taken to Southampton General Hospital where he was pronounced dead.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-hampshire-22019006

dBfazer600

  • WSB Pack Hound
  • *****
  • Posts: 575
  • I is Zedonk
    • Main bike:
      FZS600 02-03
    • View Profile
Re: On-duty police officer dies in crash in Southampton
« Reply #1 on: 04 April 2013, 12:02:54 am »
My thoughts are with his family.
 
Lets hope his cameras were on if fitted when this happend.
 
Daz
She Ain't Exactly Pretty, She Ain't Exactly Small, Fourt'two Thirt'ninefiftysix

You Could Say She's Got It All.

Skippernick

  • GP Hero
  • ******
  • Posts: 2,083
    • Main bike:
      FZS600 02-03
    • View Profile
Re: On-duty police officer dies in crash in Southampton
« Reply #2 on: 04 April 2013, 07:46:43 am »
Driver will be let off with a caution i expect.

Red Heads - Slowly taking over the world!!!

richfzs

  • GP Hero
  • ******
  • Posts: 3,507
    • Main bike:
      FZS600 98-99
    • View Profile
Re: On-duty police officer dies in crash in Southampton
« Reply #3 on: 04 April 2013, 08:07:58 am »
Will be interesting to see what does happen in that regard - was it not Hampshire where the cps decided not to prosecute that pcso who pulled out while on the phone and killed a biker?

Sent from my Nexus 4 using Tapatalk 2


simonm

  • GP Hero
  • ******
  • Posts: 1,457
  • Why so serious ?
    • Main bike:
      FZS600 00-01
    • View Profile
Re: On-duty police officer dies in crash in Southampton
« Reply #4 on: 04 April 2013, 08:22:16 am »
Driver will be let off with a caution i expect.

As far as I could interpret the article it didn't say who was at fault.

My condolences to his family.

I feel for the driver of the car too, it won't be easy knowing you've killed someone while you survived. Very humbling.
Opinions are like A**holes, Everyone has one.  Some people seem to have more than one though which is a bit odd.

richfzs

  • GP Hero
  • ******
  • Posts: 3,507
    • Main bike:
      FZS600 98-99
    • View Profile
Re: On-duty police officer dies in crash in Southampton
« Reply #5 on: 04 April 2013, 08:35:34 am »
Driver will be let off with a caution i expect.

As far as I could interpret the article it didn't say who was at fault.

My condolences to his family.

I feel for the driver of the car too, it won't be easy knowing you've killed someone while you survived. Very humbling.

Agreed on all points.

Looking at the coverage on the itv website, impact was on BMW offside, and it looks as though the BMW pulled out of the garage forecourt into his path.

Sent from my Nexus 4 using Tapatalk 2


noggythenog

  • GP Hero
  • ******
  • Posts: 4,991
    • Main bike:
      Other
    • - TRX Noggyfighter
    • View Profile
Re: On-duty police officer dies in crash in Southampton
« Reply #6 on: 04 April 2013, 10:33:27 am »
Poor bugger! Rip


Shows it can happen to the best of us,even with advanced training.


This type o thing seems to be on the increase & i cant see an easy answer,apart from doing 20mph past every junction with a waiting car which isnt the most practical,people are so busy & increasingly confident about their own driving that they dont feel the need to really stop & look & look again to be sure,its all sandwiches between the knees,phone in one hand,radio blasting.


For me just going out on the bike for fun, i can afford to lose a bit of time & my mistrust for car drivers seeing me has led to me doing just that & an agreeable nod to them to say thanks for seeing me i hope gets the message across how vulnerable i am.
Easiest way to go fast........don't buy a blue bike

simonm

  • GP Hero
  • ******
  • Posts: 1,457
  • Why so serious ?
    • Main bike:
      FZS600 00-01
    • View Profile
Re: On-duty police officer dies in crash in Southampton
« Reply #7 on: 04 April 2013, 10:49:10 am »
I hopefully ride in a risk averse way and go as slowly in built up areas to ensure I'm seen.

I know what pillocks some people can be even when I'm in a car so being on a bike makes it a risky business.

Poor people, ruined lives for the sake of observation and/or a wait of 20 seconds. I'm guessing there, it could have been inevitable in some cases, a bit of oil, a sudden puncture.  It reminds me of a snoop dog song "a million ways to die, choose one"

I keep the speed down unless I have good visibility, a straight road and I know it like the back of my hand.  Even then I scare myself sometimes, it keeps me level headed (to some degree)
Opinions are like A**holes, Everyone has one.  Some people seem to have more than one though which is a bit odd.

ChristoT

  • Alleged Foc-u Daphnis & Chloe expert
  • GP Hero
  • ******
  • Posts: 5,207
  • Fluent in English, French and bullshit!
    • Main bike:
      FZS600 98-99
    • - Saab 9-3, caravan, hang glider
    • View Profile
Re: On-duty police officer dies in crash in Southampton
« Reply #8 on: 04 April 2013, 11:26:05 am »
Rest in peace, poor bugger.

Regarding Simon's comment:
I feel for the driver of the car too, it won't be easy knowing you've killed someone while you survived. Very humbling.

There was an incident near me a couple of years back. There's a 180 degree, sharpish right hand turn going down a reasonably steep hill a few minutes from my house. A biker overcooked it going down the hill, went straight into the front of a lorry coming up the hill. The biker was killed on impact, but it was completely his fault (lorry was well on the right - this is France), and wasn't going fast. The poor lorry driver had to be treated for shock, and as far as I know, had to be hospitalised for trauma afterwards too.

Living with that knowledge, even if you weren't to blame must be an unbearable burden.
The Deef's apprentice

fireblake

  • GP Hero
  • ******
  • Posts: 1,489
    • Main bike:
      FZS 1000 Gen1
    • View Profile
Re: On-duty police officer dies in crash in Southampton
« Reply #9 on: 04 April 2013, 11:29:49 am »
I use that garage often and there is a central refuge between the 2 lanes and coming out if the garage there are no right turn signs. You have to go left and then turn sharply but so many cars do it.

R.I.P  PC Rawson
Sent from my villa in the South of France.


Grahamm

  • Global Moderator
  • GP Hero
  • *****
  • Posts: 6,656
    • Main bike:
      FZ6 04-06
    • View Profile
    • Affordable Leather Products
Re: On-duty police officer dies in crash in Southampton
« Reply #10 on: 04 April 2013, 11:50:58 am »
Looking at the coverage on the itv website, impact was on BMW offside, and it looks as though the BMW pulled out of the garage forecourt into his path.


I don't think so.

If you look at the video clip
here
it definitely looks like the BMW was hit on the driver's side and it seems that the driver was making an illegal right turn into the garage (at 00:19 there's a No Right Turn sign visible).

It may have been that the bike was filtering past not expecting the car to turn but the driver suddenly moved into his path :(

ADDENDUM Ok, I'm not sure why there's a problem with that clip appearing, but if you click on the word "here" below it, you can see it on the web site.
 
« Last Edit: 04 April 2013, 11:52:37 am by Grahamm »

simonm

  • GP Hero
  • ******
  • Posts: 1,457
  • Why so serious ?
    • Main bike:
      FZS600 00-01
    • View Profile
Re: On-duty police officer dies in crash in Southampton
« Reply #11 on: 04 April 2013, 12:06:30 pm »
Looking at the coverage on the itv website, impact was on BMW offside, and it looks as though the BMW pulled out of the garage forecourt into his path.


I don't think so.

If you look at the video clip it definitely looks like the BMW was hit on the driver's side and it seems that the driver was making an illegal right turn into the garage (at 00:19 there's a No Right Turn sign visible).

It may have been that the bike was filtering past not expecting the car to turn but the driver suddenly moved into his path :(

ADDENDUM Ok, I'm not sure why there's a problem with that clip appearing, but if you click on the word "here" below it, you can see it on the web site.


I'd agree with your description, it certainly looks that way.  If they'd extended the island enough to block the ability to turn right it would have saved a life :-(

What would the be repercussion be ? Causing death by dangerous driving, involuntary manslaughter ?

I still wouldn't want to be that guy and I'd still feel sorry for him since it was clearly an accident however stupid the manoeuvre (and it looks pretty damn stupid).  No right turn and no U turn is a PITA for getting to the petrol station, does anyone know the reasons for the signs ?  I'd have thought, given the width of the road, they could even have had a dedicated filter for the petrol station.


There must have been a lot of traffic otherwise I can't see any reason why the rider wouldn't have seen it coming.  Maybe he moved to the left of the road and was swinging a U turn due to congestion ?

here is a street view:
https://maps.google.co.uk/maps?q=Thomas+Lewis+Way&hl=en&ll=50.937437,-1.379244&spn=0.008735,0.026157&sll=53.800651,-4.064941&sspn=8.337531,26.784668&hnear=Thomas+Lewis+Way,+Southampton+SO17,+United+Kingdom&t=m&z=16&layer=c&cbll=50.937437,-1.379244&panoid=xPYkjhKVNl_xGfRJuLc9tA&cbp=12,343.54,,0,19.12
« Last Edit: 04 April 2013, 12:11:42 pm by simonm »
Opinions are like A**holes, Everyone has one.  Some people seem to have more than one though which is a bit odd.

DILLIGAFF


  • Muppet

    Plucking foccer
    Official FOC-U Saga Lout
    Kock Leeper
  • GP Hero
  • ******
  • Posts: 6,064
  • Leeper of cocks
    • Main bike:
      I don't own a bike
    • View Profile
Re: On-duty police officer dies in crash in Southampton
« Reply #12 on: 04 April 2013, 12:44:35 pm »
So sad and so unnecessary.


I believe the mind can play tricks with our perceptions. In the mind of a driver who expects a clear road, they may not actually "see" an approaching vehicle, simply because they do not want to as it would impede their progress.


Similarly I am sure we have all been frustrated by the guy in front who sits at a junction when there are no approaching other vehicles, presumably because they "believe" there will be.


If you watch pedestrians when they cross a busy road they often give only a cursory glance left and right, if at all, because they don't want any cars to be coming.


There are plenty of clips on Youtube showing this. There is one I recall where a woman is crossing a four lane busy main road and she does not look at all, presumably because her brain tells her it is clear????
She gets mown down.
I used to not give a foc, then I discovered Red Bull and now I don't give a flying foc !!!

richfzs

  • GP Hero
  • ******
  • Posts: 3,507
    • Main bike:
      FZS600 98-99
    • View Profile
Re: On-duty police officer dies in crash in Southampton
« Reply #13 on: 04 April 2013, 12:57:01 pm »
Looking at the coverage on the itv website, impact was on BMW offside, and it looks as though the BMW pulled out of the garage forecourt into his path.


I don't think so.

If you look at the video clip it definitely looks like the BMW was hit on the driver's side and it seems that the driver was making an illegal right turn into the garage (at 00:19 there's a No Right Turn sign visible).
.


That doesn't make sense at all. To be hit on the drivers side, and pushed down the road away from the garage, the car must have been back end towards the garage, front end out into the road? I don't see how the car can have been going into the garage, particularly as to do so, it would have had to drive a (short) distance down the wrong side of the central refuge.

Sent from my Nexus 4 using Tapatalk 2


richfzs

  • GP Hero
  • ******
  • Posts: 3,507
    • Main bike:
      FZS600 98-99
    • View Profile
Re: On-duty police officer dies in crash in Southampton
« Reply #14 on: 04 April 2013, 12:58:50 pm »
If the car pulled out of the garage, and tried to do a uturn around the end of the refuge (as someone else suggested) that could easily end up with the biker being collected as he tried to go round a car who had just pulled out.

Sent from my Nexus 4 using Tapatalk 2


dolau

  • GP Hero
  • ******
  • Posts: 1,975
    • Main bike:
      FZ6 S2 07-09
    • View Profile
Re: On-duty police officer dies in crash in Southampton
« Reply #15 on: 04 April 2013, 01:10:46 pm »
Did some training recently and was advised to do a SMIDSY manouevre when approaching a car at a T junction as they can apparently be blind to you coming straight at them but if you move sideways on your carriageway in relation to the driver he will notice you better..
 
Havent tried it yet
 
Also the instructor said that fluorescent isnt always best to be seen as it is like splinter camoflage put on warships to break up the outline better to have helmet, jacket and bike all the same colour to accentuate the size of you......... but then all the jam sandwiches (apart from the covert ones) have battenburg camoflage on them in blue and yellow which is the opposite to that advice
59 going on 57

simonm

  • GP Hero
  • ******
  • Posts: 1,457
  • Why so serious ?
    • Main bike:
      FZS600 00-01
    • View Profile
Re: On-duty police officer dies in crash in Southampton
« Reply #16 on: 04 April 2013, 01:13:08 pm »
If the car pulled out of the garage, and tried to do a uturn around the end of the refuge (as someone else suggested) that could easily end up with the biker being collected as he tried to go round a car who had just pulled out.

Sent from my Nexus 4 using Tapatalk 2


Richfzs,
It's worth having a look at the video clip and the google street view map.  They may shed some more light on how the road is set up.  It's possible Grahamm might be right.
Opinions are like A**holes, Everyone has one.  Some people seem to have more than one though which is a bit odd.

Skippernick

  • GP Hero
  • ******
  • Posts: 2,083
    • Main bike:
      FZS600 02-03
    • View Profile
Re: On-duty police officer dies in crash in Southampton
« Reply #17 on: 04 April 2013, 01:27:39 pm »
Assuming the car was traveling with the garage (it may have spun on impact) on the right there are clear signs saying no right turn or u-turn.
I reckon this is all the drivers fault im afraid.
Red Heads - Slowly taking over the world!!!

simonm

  • GP Hero
  • ******
  • Posts: 1,457
  • Why so serious ?
    • Main bike:
      FZS600 00-01
    • View Profile
Re: On-duty police officer dies in crash in Southampton
« Reply #18 on: 04 April 2013, 01:36:01 pm »
Assuming the car was traveling with the garage (it may have spun on impact) on the right there are clear signs saying no right turn or u-turn.
I reckon this is all the drivers fault im afraid.


On investigation this does look like the drivers fault but I'm sure the accident  investigation will clear it all up.  It's difficult to pass judgement when you can't see the skid marks, or the traffic camera footage etc.


Given the direction the wheels are pointing in it does look like the driver was trying to do a U turn or was ignoring the no right turn sign.  Poor sod would have got away with it 99% of the time (not endorsing it, just stating a fact).  This time someone's killed.  Bad day for both of them.


 :(
Opinions are like A**holes, Everyone has one.  Some people seem to have more than one though which is a bit odd.

richfzs

  • GP Hero
  • ******
  • Posts: 3,507
    • Main bike:
      FZS600 98-99
    • View Profile
Re: On-duty police officer dies in crash in Southampton
« Reply #19 on: 04 April 2013, 02:14:14 pm »
Simon, I'd already looked at the video clip before graham posted it - I believe I mentioned the itv website in one of my earlier posts. I stand by what I've said - I don't see how the car can have been going into the garage, given the damage on it.

Sent from my Nexus 4 using Tapatalk 2


BBROWN1664

  • Administrator
  • GP Hero
  • ******
  • Posts: 13,065
  • Should get out more!
    • Main bike:
      FZS600 00-01
    • - Tracer 900
    • View Profile
    • My website
Re: On-duty police officer dies in crash in Southampton
« Reply #20 on: 04 April 2013, 03:03:55 pm »
What you cannot see on the video are any tell tale skid marks to suggest the back of the car was flipped round. This suggests that the car was turning right INTO, not out of, the garage but any witnesses will have told plod the correct answer already.
Given the fact it looks like it is turning INTO the garage, suggests it was a last second "fuck I need fuel" situation and the driver didn't even look, just swung right and got hit by the bike doing close to the limit
Another ex-Fazer rider that is a foccer again

simonm

  • GP Hero
  • ******
  • Posts: 1,457
  • Why so serious ?
    • Main bike:
      FZS600 00-01
    • View Profile
Re: On-duty police officer dies in crash in Southampton
« Reply #21 on: 04 April 2013, 03:12:39 pm »
What you cannot see on the video are any tell tale skid marks to suggest the back of the car was flipped round. This suggests that the car was turning right INTO, not out of, the garage but any witnesses will have told plod the correct answer already.
Given the fact it looks like it is turning INTO the garage, suggests it was a last second "fuck I need fuel" situation and the driver didn't even look, just swung right and got hit by the bike doing close to the limit

I wondered if there was a queue of traffic and the guy swung to the left of his lane and did a u Turn to find an alternative route. That might explain why the bike and car didn't see each other until the manoeuvre took place.
Opinions are like A**holes, Everyone has one.  Some people seem to have more than one though which is a bit odd.

richfzs

  • GP Hero
  • ******
  • Posts: 3,507
    • Main bike:
      FZS600 98-99
    • View Profile
Re: On-duty police officer dies in crash in Southampton
« Reply #22 on: 04 April 2013, 03:43:18 pm »
What you cannot see on the video are any tell tale skid marks to suggest the back of the car was flipped round. This suggests that the car was turning right INTO, not out of, the garage but any witnesses will have told plod the correct answer already.
Given the fact it looks like it is turning INTO the garage, suggests it was a last second "fuck I need fuel" situation and the driver didn't even look, just swung right and got hit by the bike doing close to the limit

Given the central refuge, he can't have swung right as you suggest, and have the car end up where it is. All he can do is drift right, in which case it would be a glancing blow if the bike was alongside, or hard into the boot. Still don't see how the car wasn't coming out of the garage (and most likely doing an immediate u turn to achieve the effect of turning right, which the refuge prevents)

Whatever, tragic... :-(

Sent from my Nexus 4 using Tapatalk 2
« Last Edit: 04 April 2013, 03:44:13 pm by richfzs »

Grahamm

  • Global Moderator
  • GP Hero
  • *****
  • Posts: 6,656
    • Main bike:
      FZ6 04-06
    • View Profile
    • Affordable Leather Products
Re: On-duty police officer dies in crash in Southampton
« Reply #23 on: 04 April 2013, 03:46:48 pm »
No right turn and no U turn is a PITA for getting to the petrol station, does anyone know the reasons for the signs ?  I'd have thought, given the width of the road, they could even have had a dedicated filter for the petrol station.

Having had a bit more of a dig around, the road is part of the A335 aka Thomas Lewis Way and I think I've actually ridden it in the past as it's a major route into and out of Southampton from the M27 so having traffic trying to turn right into the garage (or turn right coming out of it) would probably be very risky and cause a lot of disruption, hence the barrier in the road, but clearly it's not long enough to stop idiots like the BMW driver ignoring the "No Right Turn" signs and trying to get into the garage the wrong way :(

Grahamm

  • Global Moderator
  • GP Hero
  • *****
  • Posts: 6,656
    • Main bike:
      FZ6 04-06
    • View Profile
    • Affordable Leather Products
Re: On-duty police officer dies in crash in Southampton
« Reply #24 on: 04 April 2013, 03:51:33 pm »
That doesn't make sense at all. To be hit on the drivers side, and pushed down the road away from the garage, the car must have been back end towards the garage, front end out into the road? I don't see how the car can have been going into the garage, particularly as to do so, it would have had to drive a (short) distance down the wrong side of the central refuge.

If you look at the Street View Simonm posted above and at the video clip, the barrier doesn't go past the garage exit, so probably the driver was trying to get in that way (not observing the No Right Turn) signs.

The bike is behind the car to the right hand rear (the road is a 40 limit) so it must have hit the car as the driver started to turn and then bounced back (there's only a little bit of debris ahead of the car)