Stay up to date with notifications from The Independent

Notifications can be managed in browser preferences.

Motorists taunt suicidal woman on bridge and tell her to 'get on with it'

One driver suggested to Surrey Police that they shoot the suicidal woman so that the motorway could be reopened

Siobhan Fenton
Sunday 05 July 2015 07:15 EDT
Comments
The M3 was closed for two hours whilst emergency services tended to the woman
The M3 was closed for two hours whilst emergency services tended to the woman ( Matt Cardy/Getty Images)

Your support helps us to tell the story

From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.

At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.

The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.

Your support makes all the difference.

Motorists stuck in traffic taunted a distressed woman as police tried to talk her down from a bridge.

The M3 at Sunbury, Surrey was closed for more than two hours yesterday whilst emergency teams tended to the woman who was in distress.

Whilst Surrey Police were at the scene, one Twitter user tweeted the force’s online account: “Tell her to get on with it. Bloody ruining everyone’s weekend. Sat in this for an hour and a half now.”

Another person suggested that police shoot the suicidal woman with a rubber bullet: “To the person causing traffic jam on the M3/ A31, you selfish, selfish tw*t.

“Surrey police, can’t you rubber bullet the jumper on M3/ A316 and get the traffic moving? Or get net ready and charge her? Ridiculous.”

Surrey Police say that the woman was helped to safety and detained under the Mental Health Act.

Inspector Julie Hillman criticised motorists who had mocked the woman. She 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 so helped save the woman’s life.

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

Anyone in need of confidential support can contact the Samaritans in the UK 24 hours a day on 08457 90 90 90.

Additional reporting by PA

Join our commenting forum

Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies

Comments

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged inPlease refresh your browser to be logged in