Three Notts Police officers have been commended for saving the life of a man who was left hanging from the roof of a city centre hotel by his fingertips.
PC Gina Boothby, PC Nick Johnston and PC Lindsey Webster were awarded their commendations on at the force’s local awards evening at Mansfield Town Football Club.
The incident happened at the Crown Plaza Hotel in Nottingham on August 13, where the officers were responding to a report of a man on a thin ledge at the top of the building.
They made their way to the top floor, while other officers cleared the street below.
On reaching the top, the three officers found the man sat on the edge, with one leg dangling over the side.
Initially, the man engaged with them, but without warning he climbed back over the wall and onto the ledge.
He lost his footing and became dislodged, leaving him hanging onto the wall by his fingertips with his legs dangling below.
With little or no time to spare to consider how best to approach the situation, the officers ran to the edge and grabbed hold of the man, managing to haul him back over the wall to safety and saving his life.
The officers were commended for their calm professionalism and team work.
PC Gina Boothby said: “I was one of the initial officers there on the scene and we tried to engage with him until he asked for help.
“Obviously it was very scary watching him climb onto the other side, but we kept calm and it was very rewarding and we are all very proud that we were able to save his life that day.”
PC Nick Johnston added: “We went up the lift that night and we were the first responders. It was a bit more nerve-wracking for me as I’m not great with heights.
“Our full focus was to get the man to safety and look after him. There’s no training or any past scenario that can put you in that position, it’s all instinct and thankfully we saved him.
“I’m very proud of the award, although it’s a little unexpected, as I’d like to think others would have done exactly the same thing if they were in that position.”
PC Lindsey Webster said: “All three of us worked together and we were in the position waiting for negotiators. He was obviously having suicidal thoughts and at one point he wasn’t going to change his mind. Thankfully he did, he asked for our help and we gave him reassurance messages and managed to pull back over to the right side.
“It happened really quickly, so you just have to react and my feeling was that I just wanted to help him.
“I’m really proud to receive the award and it’s always great to recognition of the work. My family and friends are very proud of our actions that day.”
The awards gave the force a fantastic opportunity to recognise and reward officers, staff and volunteers, as well as the general public.
From hard-working volunteers and committed and dedicated staff, to officers going above and beyond the call of duty and members of the public performing acts of incredible bravery, the awards give us all a chance to celebrate the very best of policing.
