Updated

Updated · bbc.co.uk · Aug 23

Families Hail 2 Officers Killed in A66 Wrong-Way Crash as £120,000 Fund Tops Target

Updated

Updated · bbc.co.uk · Aug 23

Families Hail 2 Officers Killed in A66 Wrong-Way Crash as £120,000 Fund Tops Target

Q: What undisclosed circumstances led to a fatal early-morning collision between a Cleveland Police vehicle and a civilian car on the A66?

The circumstances have not been publicly disclosed. Cleveland Police have said only that the crash happened at about 03:39 BST on the A66 in South Bank, near Middlesbrough, and involved one of their vehicles and a Volkswagen Passat, resulting in multiple deaths. Based on the information released so far, there is no confirmed public explanation of what led to the collision, such as whether the police vehicle was responding to an incident, whether speed or road conditions were factors, or how the two vehicles came into contact. Officers are still identifying the victims and notifying relatives. What is clear is that the road was closed while emergency services responded and investigators examined the scene. Police have said the case remains under investigation, and any fuller account of the events leading up to the crash is likely to depend on collision inquiry findings, witness evidence, vehicle forensics, and any police operational review. So, at this stage, the cause and surrounding circumstances remain unknown to the public.

3 articles · Updated · bbc.co.uk · Aug 23

More than £120,000 had been raised by Sunday evening for the families of PCs Tom Clough, 38, and Matthew Blades, 37, as relatives called the two Cleveland officers heroes after Saturday’s fatal A66 crash.
The IOPC said the officers were helping search for a Volkswagen Passat linked to numerous incidents and suspected cloned plates when it turned onto the wrong side of the dual carriageway and hit their armed response car at 03:39 BST.
Five Passat occupants — Michael Robert Cahill, 23, Jacob Matusiak, 23, Theo Rae, 17, Makai Saddington, 18, and Cole Robert Worthy, 17 — also died, taking the death toll to seven.
Tributes widened beyond the families, with football clubs, a former school and local residents praising Blades and Clough, while fellow officers laid flowers and observed a silence at the scene.
The A66 section between Eston Road and Normanby Road was due to stay shut until Monday for repairs as the watchdog’s investigation into the crash continued.