This is the dramatic moment police crashed head-on into a dementia sufferer’s car after he was spotted travelling at 50mph on the wrong side of a MOTORWAY.
Police were called to the M6 Toll in the West Midlands at 9.50pm on Tuesday after reports that a Honda Jazz was heading south on the northbound carriageway.
Two brave officers were forced to risk a head-on collision and deliberately block the path of the car in the outside lane to avoid a serious accident.
Dramatic footage released by West Midlands Police yesterday shows the moment the traffic cops spotted the Honda coming towards them at speed.
The officers position their patrol car directly in the path of the oncoming vehicle which can be seen with it’s bright headlights hurtling towards them at 50mph.
One anxious officer can be hear saying “He’s coming at speed mate, he’s coming at speed. He’s going to hit, he’s going to hit. He’s going to hit. He’s going to hit us.”
The 50-second clip taken from the vehicles on board camera then shows the moment the driver manoeuvres slightly out of the way of the car to shunt it into the central reservation.
Following a loud crash, the driver then says: “I had to mate”, to which his partner replies: “I know you did.”
After the collision, officers discovered the driver of the Honda was a 77-year-old man with dementia who had been reported missing from his home that evening.
The pensioner was not injured in the ordeal and was checked over by paramedics before being taken back to his family in Rowley Regis, West Mids.
One officer suffered a minor injury in the collision and police closed the northbound carriageway between junction T5 and T4 for a short time to clear debris.
Force Traffic Manager, Inspector Greg Jennings, praised the two officers for bringing the drama to a safe conclusion.
He added: “Traffic officers are highly trained to make good decisions in difficult situations and a very challenging environment.
“These officers have kept their resolve in the face of a serious threat to ensure the safety of the public directly behind them.
“Thankfully the officers managed to stop the vehicle with only minor injury to one of them.
“The family of the Honda driver have thanked us for bringing the incident to a safe conclusion.”
Inspector Mark Watkins, from the Central Motorway Police Group, said officers only smash into cars if there is a significant threat to other road users.
He added: “It’s a recognised pursuit tactic in order to bring incidents to a conclusion, and is only used if there’s a risk to life.
“This was an extremely unusual situation where the driver of the car had shown no intention to stop travelling in the wrong direction
“Traffic officers bravely took the decision to engineer a collision with the vehicle and I am sure that their selfless actions have prevented serious injury or worse to the driver and other motorists on the road.
“That forced the car to stop, and it came to a halt in lane three.
“We were relieved that we could bring this situation to a safe conclusion and return the man home safe and well to his family.”
TRANSCRIPT OF VIDEO
Control room: “Tango, Charlie he’s coming your way now, over.”
Officer 1: “Yeah, we’ve got him. Stand by.”
Officer 2: “He’s coming at speed mate, he’s coming at speed. He’s going to hit, he’s going to hit. He’s going to hit. He’s going to hit us.”
*CRASH*
Officer 1: “I had to mate.”
Officer 2: “I know you did, I know you did.”
Officer 1: “Doors shut, I can’t get out mate.”
“Mike, Alpha, Tango, Charlie, Seven, Three, we’ve had to take this car out.
“Vehicle is stopped. Our vehicle is slightly damaged. Unfortunately it was coming too fast towards us
“We’ve got vehicles lane three on the oncoming. So stand by, will give you a quick update shortly.”
