A police officer was struck by a train after “misleading” information was given to officers trying to help a vulnerable man on a railway line, an inquest has heard.
Sgt Graham Saville was hit after he was deployed to the railway line near Newark, Nottinghamshire, on 24 August 2023, and died in hospital five days later.
On Wednesday, the inquest at Nottingham Council House heard officers at the scene were informed Network Rail would be contacted to stop the train, but the call was delayed by five minutes before Sgt Saville was struck.
No contact was made with Network Rail to stop the train until 20 seconds before Sgt Saville was struck at 19:08 BST, coroner Laurinda Bower said.
The hearing was told two officers attending the call with Sgt Saville repeatedly told the police dispatcher that the distressed man, referred to in court as Patient C, was near the railway line and had threatened to walk in front of a train.
Ms Bower said the two officers were told the police control room was “on to” National Rail and had them “ready to go in case” Patient C went on to the tracks, but “the phone had not been picked up”.
Jack Richardson, who was working as a Nottinghamshire Police dispatcher for the Newark area that evening, told the court the call to stop trains on the line “should have been made sooner”.
The coroner asked him if the reassurances given to the officers were “misleading”, to which the witness replied: “It could be interpreted that way by the officers, yes”.
Ms Bower said to Mr Richardson: “It seems to me that there was a five minute delay in seeking to make contact with Network Rail, between officers saying he is looking like he [Patient C] is going to go on to the line… then five minutes lapsing before anyone picks up the phone to get on to Network Rail.
“It limits the time Network Rail has got to take any effective action.”
The witness said: “I was not aware that we should be calling Network Rail prior to that. It was my understanding that a call should be made when someone enters a rail network.”
Mr Richardson agreed it was “obvious” that it would take more than a few seconds to stop a train moving at a speed of up to 125mph.
He added: “That call should have been made sooner. Given the new training that’s been brought in, Network Rail should be advised, informed, as soon as there is a first mention of someone heading towards the railway network.”
The inquest had previously heard Patient C had called East Midlands Ambulance Service (EMAS) to say he had overdosed on caffeine and he was was walking towards the railway line, near Hollowdyke Lane in Balderton, with the intention of harming himself.
The hearing had been told Patient C had a history of “fighting with police” and Sgt Saville had attended because he was trained to use a Taser.
The hearing continues.
Additional reporting by Dan Martin
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