The recent death of 12-year-old Hayden Waller has reminded of a debate that occured among IIRSM members during 2007. Hayden's pal slipped while trekking on a school trip in southern Austria, and Hayden attempted to help him, falling to his death.
Hayden, a 12-year-old school boy, died trying to save another child.
Rewind to the death of Jordon Lyon, who drowned in May 2007 in a pond after trying to save his step-sister when they got into diffulties. Another child who died trying to save someone else. The subsequent inquest into the 10-year-old's death prompted calls to scrap Police Community Support Officers, as it revealed that they "just stood by and watched".
So, if a small child is willing to risk his life to help another human being in distress, why didn't the PCSOs? Lack of training? Or should they not be required to risk their lives, as thousands of regular police officers do every day?
Far be it for me to drag up old arguments, but I thought it worth mentioning.
Return to HealthandSafetyProfessional.co.uk
