SWAN HILL cop Andrew Downes has humbly received a heroism medal for repeatedly retelling one of the most horrific moments of his life.
Leading Senior Constable (LSC) Downes was before a crowd of about 200 in Melbourne on Monday to receive his Victorian honour at the Pride of Australia medals ceremony.
“I wasn’t expecting it, I was pretty chuffed,” he said.
“But in a way I wished I wasn’t there, due to the circumstances myself and my family have been through to get there.”
It all began when LSC Downes attended a pedestrian fatality about eight years ago, only to discover his daughter, Emily, was the victim.
LSC Downes has shared this story about a dozen times in a variety of public forums, mostly with schoolchildren, in the interest of combatting road trauma.
But the Youth Resource Officer said it was still difficult to talk about the incident.
” I had to get up… and thank the police and everybody, even then I had to draw breath and take a minute to relive the moments of the story.
“Road trauma can affect anyone, whether it’s your passenger, mum, dad brother or sister, it can affect people in a profound life-changing way.”
Mr Downes said he was “a small link in a big chain” and thanked Victoria Police and other community members involved in road safety talks.
