Surrey Police condemns drivers for 'taunting' distressed woman who brought M3 to standstill for two hours

 
Emergency: Police block the M3 to stop a 'distressed' woman jumping from a bridge (Picture: @clairepead/Twitter)
@clairepead/Twitter
Tom Marshall5 July 2015

Drivers began "taunting" a distressed woman who police feared was about to jump from a bridge above the M3, after the motorway was brought to a standstill.

Officers have condemned the actions of some motorists following the incident on the M3 just outside London today.

Surrey Police closed the motorway near Sunbury after being called at 11.07am following fears for the safety of the woman, who was standing on a footbridge over the road.

Traffic was halted for more than two hours while specially-trained negotiators talked to her.

She was eventually helped to safety and detained under the Mental Health Act, before lanes re-opened at 1.30pm.

The force said officers at the scene “became aware of members of the public taunting the woman”.

One woman wrote on Twitter: “Surrey Police, can’t you rubber bullet the jumper on the M3/A316 and get the traffic moving? Or get net ready and charge her?”

Another tweeter said: “Tell her to get on with it. Bloody ruining everyone’s weekend.”

Inspector Julie Hillman said: “Having members of the public taunt somebody who is clearly in a distressed state as we did earlier today is completely unacceptable.

“I hope the public understand why it was necessary for us to close the road as doing helped save the woman’s life.

“I appreciate that being stuck in traffic is the last thing that people want to be doing, particularly on a weekend when the weather is hot, but on this occasion it was completely necessary to ensure officers saw this woman to safety.”

After Surrey police posted the statement on Twitter, Amanda Allan wrote: “Some people really need to look at themselves!”

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