A police officer has been seriously injured after the police car he was in crashed with a semi-trailer while on highway patrol duties near Northam.
Road Policing Commander Mike Peters said the 26-year-old male probationary constable was in the marked patrol car when it collided with the truck on Great Eastern Highway in Irishtown about 10.55am on Thursday.
The officer was rushed to Northam Regional Hospital under lights and sirens before he was later airlifted to Royal Perth Hospital by the RAC Rescue helicopter.
Another policeman, 34, was fortunate to avoid serious injuries in the crash. He was being treated in Northam. Meanwhile, the driver of the semi-trailer was not injured.
Cdr Peters said the two officers were based out of Midland’s Road Policing Command. It is unknown which officer was driving at the time.
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About 20 minutes after the crash in Irishtown, an unmarked police car collided with an 80-year-old woman’s car as she was turning into a driveway in Subiaco.
The police car was under lights and sirens responding to reports somebody was armed with a firearm before the crash.
“(Police provided) immediate medical care (to the woman), as is always the case, and obviously, immediate contact with St John’s paramedics to get people out there to assist the person at the time,” Cdr Peters said.
A St John WA spokeswoman said the woman was taken to Royal Perth Hospital. Her injuries are not believed to be life-threatening.
A 23-year-old woman is assisting police with their enquires in relation to the reported firearm incident.
Cdr Peters said both crashes were a “very stark reminder to the community about the perils of policing in the community.”
“Our officers go out every day to protect the community and make it safe, and this is an example of how dangerous and difficult policing is and the work that our officers do,” he said.
“What I’ll also say, is we will wrap around all people affected by these crashes this morning and make sure their welfare is cared for and looked after. That includes our officers and any other member of the community that’s been involved in these incidents.”
Both crashes will be investigated by the major crash squad to determine if anyone was at fault.
“This is an ongoing investigation being conducted by our major crash investigation section, which is standard process for the internal investigations area to oversight these investigations,” Cdr Peter said.
“The police go out every day to do their absolute best to protect the community, and it is unfortunate that these events happen, and our hearts and mind goes out to all the people that may be affected by this, whether they’re civilians, members of the public or members of the WA Police Force.”
Nationals MP Lachlan Hunter told State Parliament on Thursday afternoon: “On behalf of all members, we’re thinking of those two police officers who have been injured in that car accident, just north of Northam in my electorate.”
Police are calling for anyone with information about either crash to come forward.
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