The death of a dedicated officer has forced Essex Police to review the way it deals with road accidents.

PC Gary Veal died in hospital after sustaining multiple injuries when he was in collision with a car on the A12 as he tried to prevent an accident.

At an inquest yesterday, a jury heard how police guidelines on dealing with road accidents were released following his death.

Coroner's officer Ian Hunter said PC Veal was called out to a broken down car on the A12 at the A133 slip road into central Colchester at about 6.20pm on January 12 last year.

He told the jury sitting at Chelmsford Shire Hall how the 36-year-old officer of New Farm Road, Stanway, Colchester, had been laying out cones and signs to warn oncoming traffic of the breakdown when he was struck by a car.

PC Veal was taken to Colchester General Hospital, where he died from multiple injuries.

Paul Johnson was driving the car that was in collision with PC Veal.

He told the inquest he had been driving back to Norfolk after spending time with his family in Kent.

He said he did not see PC Veal and was slowing down so he could pull in behind PC Veal's police car, but he said: 'The next thing I knew I had hit something.'

He said he only realised it was PC Veal after he rolled his window down.

Mr Johnson said: 'I know PC Veal's brother doesn't want to speak to me, but I would just like to offer my condolences, for what they are worth, to the family."

Insp Stephen Brewer told the inquest how the death of PC Veal and that of another Essex officer had inspired a working group to compile a report containing 25 recommendations on how to deal with road accidents.

He said some recommendations had been put into practice while others were being implemented.

Published Thursday, January 16, 2003

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