07
May
Police officers who tried to save motorist in Harrogate railway crash nominated for award
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Three police officers have been nominated for a national bravery award after risking their own safety to rescue a driver who had crashed onto a railway track in Harrogate.
The officers were responding to reports a vehicle had left the road and was on the railway line.
Firearms officer PC Alex McGee, roads policing officer PC Mike Halsted, and a second firearms officer who has chosen to remain anonymous have been nominated for their actions in trying to rescue the driver.
The incident happened in York Place, Harrogate on the afternoon of July 17, 2025.
PC McGee was first on the scene and found the vehicle at the bottom of a steep bank, having come to a rest upside down on the railway line below.
The firearms officers were nearby and attended to provide enhanced tactical medical capability. Firefighters were also in attendance.
The officers’ nomination said:
“Not only was the life of the driver at risk, but the safety of rail users was too. The railway banking was heavily overgrown, making access to the tracks challenging.”
Spotters were positioned along the track to warn of approaching trains.
Meanwhile, the three officers decided to begin life-saving efforts, despite Network Rail warning it was unsafe to go onto the tracks.
Emergency treatment
The officers, working with firefighters, got the driver out of his vehicle and up the steep embankment towards the Stray where emergency treatment took place.
PC McGee used a defibrillator while PC Halsted and the firefighters carried out CPR, before ambulance and air ambulance crews took over.
Sadly, the driver died, despite the efforts of those present. Police said he died of natural causes.
PC McGee said he was ‘enormously honoured and humbled’ to be nominated alongside his colleagues to represent North Yorkshire Police at the Police Federation of England and Wales Bravery Awards later this year.
He said:
I’m really grateful for the nomination, if a bit surprised. It wasn’t a nice thing to be at, but I think it’s part of the job.
I think there are officers who’ve done more notable and courageous acts across the past year dealing with people who wish to cause them serious harm, so I’m enormously honoured and humbled to be recognised at all.”
Often we think the things we do are normal, but as this incident shows, we face a lot of risk.
No two days are the same and for a lot of us that’s what we love about the job. It keeps us turning up every day.
North Yorkshire Police Federation chair Rob Bowles said:
On behalf of the federation branch and our members, I congratulate these three officers on their nomination for a bravery award.
They are a credit to North Yorkshire Police and the incident is a strong reminder of the risks officers routinely face while serving their communities.
Despite the clear dangers of carrying out a rescue on an active railway line and challenging terrain, they put the preservation of life above their own safety.
They demonstrated exceptional courage and selflessness.
And their determination to do everything possible for the driver showed off the very best of policing.
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