Lossiemouth Officers Honoured for Bravery During a Fire

Four North East officers have been honoured for their bravery and swift action that helped save lives during a fire in Lossiemouth.

On Monday 25 October, 2021, Chief Superintendent George MacDonald and Superintendent Kate Stephen visited Elgin Police Station to present awards to Sergeant Sean Jones, PC Selina Banford, PC Lisa MacIntyre and PC Paul Thompson.

All four Officers had been on duty during the evening of Thursday 12 December, 2019 when they saw smoke within a block of flats.

While PCs MacIntyre and Thompson ensured that residents within the block were safely evacuated, PC Banford and Sergeant Jones entered the property that was alight to search for occupants.

Once inside, they found a male requiring assistance and quickly helped him from the flat where he was assessed by ambulance staff and treated for minor injuries.

For their roles in saving the man from the burning building, Sergeant Jones and PC Banford were awarded bravery medals from The Society For Protection of Life From Fire.

Constables MacIntyre and Thompson were also awarded certificates for their excellent endeavours and all four officers have been praised by their Senior officers.

Chief Inspector Norman Stevenson, Local Area Commander for Elgin said: “While it our duty as Police Officers to protect the public, Sergeant Jones and Constables Banford, MacIntyre and Thompson went above and beyond to ensure lives were not lost as a result of this fire.  Putting their own lives at risk, each officer played a vital role in getting members of the public out of harm’s way.

"I am in no doubt that, had it not been for their timely intervention, we would have been dealing with a more tragic set of circumstances.

"All four officers are a credit to themselves and Police Scotland and I am delighted their bravery has been recognised.”