Courageous South Yorkshire Police Trio Named Overall Winners of The Federation’s First Ever Bravery Awards

Three South Yorkshire Police officers who swam out in freezing water in a courageous attempt to save two men from a car in a river have been named the overall winners of the first ever South Yorkshire Police Federation Bravery Award.

Sgt Stuart Greatwood, Sgt Gary Reece and PC Paul Reeder were among 11 colleagues across the force recognised at the Federation’s first event for their superb police work and their bravery.

They will now go on to be the South Yorkshire Police representatives at the National Police Bravery Awards in London in July.

It was just after 7pm on the evening of 30 January 2021 when the trio arrived at a road traffic collision in Sheffield, where a Mercedes car had hit the railings of a bridge over the River Don and plunged into the water below.

They found the car in the river around three metres from the bank. The temperature that January night was near-freezing, and the area was not well-lit. The bank of the river was muddy and crumbling, with a sheer drop of about a metre into the river.

Sgt Reece – who was a PC at the time of the incident – recalls: “We heard a call come in saying there was a car that had gone through the barriers on a bridge near Meadowhall and was upside down in the river. Stuart and I landed at the same time as Paul… we looked over the edge of the bridge and could see that the railings were hanging out, well over the river.

“We looked down and could see a vehicle upside down, water going over the top of it. So we went down to the riverside… we thought, ‘We’ve got to try and rescue whoever’s in there’.”

He added: “For the few days previous, it had rained, it had snowed, it was obviously the end of January so you can imagine the height of the river. It was pretty much in full flood. It was very, very fast and it was absolutely freezing cold.

“As soon as we stepped in, we were expecting it maybe up to our knees and a gradual heightening of the water level. We stepped in and straight it was up to our chins and we got swept down the bank for probably 10 metres or so.

“Stuart used to be a very high quality swimmer and made it to the vehicle with a rope. Paul and I managed to also get out to the vehicle. But by the time we’d got out to the vehicle, maybe 10 metres away from the bank, you were absolutely freezing straight away. It literally took your breath away.

“I tried to kick the windows just to try and gain some kind of access to the vehicle so we could try and locate anyone inside, pull them out. But because of the speed of the current, you could barely do anything. It was pretty much pinning me against the vehicle.

“Stuart had taken a Life Hammer with him. He was trying to smash the windows but he just couldn’t get enough of a swing because of the speed of the water…. we ended up being on top of the vehicle, trying as many different things as we could think of to try and gain entry. But we just couldn’t.”

The trio tried everything they could to get the occupants of the car out, spending more than 20 minutes in the freezing water in just their boots, trousers and work t-shirt, but ultimately they were unsuccessful in their rescue attempt.

The two occupants – Tommy Hydes, aged 24, and his 20-year-old nephew Josh Hydes – were eventually pulled from the river by firefighters and taken to hospital where, sadly, they were pronounced dead.

The officers spent some time being monitored by paramedics before being let on their way.

South Yorkshire Police Federation Chair Steve Kent said: “Police officers never know what will confront them when the call comes in. This was a tragic incident and involved dynamic decision making and no shortage of risk to our colleagues. Ultimately they did everything they could to try and save the car’s occupants.”

He added: “Once again this incident shows how police officers are much more than crime fighters. Stuart, Gary and Paul showed huge courage in swimming out to the car and attempting to recover the occupants, but sadly they were hampered by the fast-flowing, freezing cold water and zero visibility.

“It is so incredibly tragic there was not a better outcome, but we should not lose sight of what our courageous colleagues attempted to do that night. It was heroic.”

Steve concluded: “Our thoughts remain with the families of the two young men who lost their lives.”

Sgt Greatwood, Sgt Reece and PC Reeder, who have also been recommended for a Royal Humane Society Award, attended the South Yorkshire Police Federation Bravery Awards ceremony on 16 June where they were announced overall winners.

The Awards are in Association with The Northern Healthcare Scheme. The hashtag for the event is #SYPFBravery.