A collision on the A66 in South Bank, near Middlesbrough, has resulted in the deaths of seven people, including two police officers. The crash occurred at 3:39am when a police vehicle and a Volkswagen Passat collided on the road.
Pursuit and collision details
Cleveland Police stated that officers "sighted a suspicious vehicle and a pursuit began" prior to the incident. The Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) said it understood this sequence of events as it launched an investigation. The force added: "The Passat was travelling the wrong way along the A66 and collided with a police vehicle that was travelling on the same road in the right direction."
"All occupants of both vehicles were pronounced dead at the scene," the force confirmed.
Officers named and force response
The two officers killed have been identified as Pc Matthew Blades, 37, and Pc Tom Clough, 38. Chief Constable Victoria Fuller expressed the force's condolences, saying: "First and foremost, our thoughts are with the families of everyone involved in today's incident. No one should leave their home and not return safely, including police officers serving their communities and protecting the people of Cleveland."
She added: "This tragic incident will be felt across Cleveland, within our communities and throughout the entire policing family. We are providing specialist support to all families involved at this extremely difficult time." The investigation has been referred to the IOPC, which is standard procedure when a death occurs following police contact. Fuller urged the public to "avoid speculation" while the investigation takes place.
Political and emergency service reactions
Prime Minister Andy Burnham said he was "devastated" to learn of the deaths. In a post on X, he stated: "My thoughts are with the families and loved ones of everyone involved, and with everyone at Cleveland Police. Thank you to the emergency services responding in incredibly difficult circumstances. I would urge people to avoid speculation at this time."
The North East Ambulance Service deployed 14 ambulance resources to the scene, including emergency ambulance crews, a specialist paramedic, a Hazardous Area Response Team, and a doctor from Great North Air Ambulance Service. A spokesperson said: "Sadly despite the best efforts of everyone attending, a number of patients died at the scene. We send condolences to all of those affected by such a tragic event and thank everyone for all they did to help."
IOPC investigation underway
Nicola Marfleet, IOPC Director of Investigations, said: "This is a tragic incident, and my thoughts are with family and friends and all those affected, including the emergency services in attendance. Our investigation is in the very early stages, we have sent investigators to the post incident procedures to begin reviewing evidence."
She confirmed that the referral to the IOPC is mandatory following a death after police contact. "Our role is to establish and examine the circumstances of what happened; this work is already underway, and Cleveland Police is cooperating with our enquiries. We will provide a further update when we are in a position to do so," Marfleet added.
