Life-Saving Essex officers up for National #PoliceBravery Awards

TWO Essex police officers who rescued a man from drowning in thick estuary mud have been nominated for this year’s National Police Bravery Awards.

Sgt Mike Latham and PC Tom Clinton were called out to the incident in the Thames Estuary in Canvey Island in July 2015. A man had jumped off the sea wall and had sustained injuries to his face and leg when the pair arrived on the scene.

They had to ascertain the situation quickly and alongside six RNLI lifeguards managed to get close enough to the man to haul him to safety.

The man at first physically pushed the officers away and they also had to battle choppy waters and a rising tide during the rescue attempt.

Having hauled him ashore the man, in his twenties, received the urgent medical care he needed as he was showing early symptoms of hypothermia.

Without their intervention paramedics said the man would have likely died.

PC Clinton has received two Chief Constable commendations in his career for rescuing people from a fire in a multi occupancy setting and for giving 45 mins of CPR to a member of the public.

Essex Chief Constable Stephen Kavanagh said: “Michael and Thomas haven’t had training in how to remove somebody in a life-threatening situation in the middle of the sea.

“They worked with the RNLI team and bravely committed to making this man safe.

“It wasn’t until afterwards that the complexity that they dealt with struck and there is a man living today because of their professionalism.”

Essex Police Federation Chair Steve Taylor added that he was proud of what Michael and Thomas did that day.

“It’s another great example of the dedication and bravery police officers show in the line of duty,” he said.

“It wasn’t an easy rescue by any means and they had to make snap decisions in order to save this man’s life – we’re very proud of them.”

Sgt Latham and PC Clinton will attend a reception and an evening awards ceremony in London in July. The National Police Bravery Awards honour officers who have performed outstanding acts of bravery while on or off duty. The awards are sponsored by Police Mutual.