Delivering the news of a loved one’s passing is undeniably the hardest part of Roads Policing Acting Inspector Will Ayres’ role.
Yet, it is a specific notification of death that has resonated with Will over his extensive policing tenure.
“It was New Year’s Eve and a family had all gathered to celebrate the new year,” recalls Will.
“Their daughter was due to finish work and the family were all having a takeaway at home together to see in the new year. As I knocked on the door to inform them that their daughter was not coming home, I heard someone from inside shout ‘The food’s here’. Sadly, this wasn’t the case and what should have been a happy occasion quickly became their worst nightmare.
“Walking up to the front door, you know you are about to change lives forever. When that door opens and the family sees a police officer, you can instantly see the colour drain from their faces and they know something bad has happened.”
After three and a half years of service as a police officer, Will moved to the Roads Policing Unit. He’d always had a keen interest in road policing and a passion for road safety having attended a fatality early in his career.
“I saw the devastation it caused to a family and from then on, I knew road safety was an area of policing I was passionate about,” he said.
Seven years into his roads policing career, Will is now Acting inspector, but the first fatality he ever dealt with remains with him until this day.
He said: “A father and daughter were killed on a road in the south of the county having been out for the day making plans for her upcoming wedding. Knowing their day was full of happy thoughts and hopes for the future to then so suddenly and tragically be over was particularly poignant and will always remain with me.”
As part of the Wiltshire Police Road Safety Awareness Campaign, prompted by a surge in severe injury and fatal accidents, Will takes it upon himself to spotlight the ‘fatal five’ offences, statistically proven as contributors to fatal and grievous road incidents. These are driving under the influence of alcohol and drugs, reckless and dangerous driving, distractions such as mobile phone usage, excessive speed, and failure to wear a seatbelt.
“Our roads policing unit remains resolute in securing Wiltshire’s roadways, providing 24/7 support to our community policing counterparts and targeting those drivers most predisposed to causing harm,” Will asserted.
“It’s frustrating to hear motorists suggest we don’t have anything better to do, or excuses such as ‘I was just checking a text message’. They have no idea how close they potentially are to being involved in a serious collision as a result of their own actions.
“It’s also incredibly frustrating when members of the public approach road closures at the scenes of fatal collisions, often disgruntled that their journey is going to be extended, or they may be late.
“If only they knew what we were dealing with.”
