Police road operation completed off the back of 11-year-olds death
11 year-old Harry Dennis died in December 2022 after the load from a scaffold lorry came loose
Surrey and Sussex police conducted a road operation in order to ensure loads on trucks were securely fastened.
It follows the death of 11 year-old Harry Dennis in December 2022 after the load from a scaffold lorry came loose and crashed though windscreen of the car he was travelling in.
His mum, Maria joined the police on the operation, sharing her story with drivers in hopes to make them think twice before driving dangerously
"The accident happened but it didn’t have to happen,” she said. “It’s through somebody’s laziness really that Harry is no longer here."
“I need to share that message to make sure people, when they are going on the road, take that extra time to make sure their load is secure, so it doesn’t happen again.
We lost Harry through something that was preventable. I need to be his voice, shouting for him.
It made me really angry that it could easily have been avoidable, which is when I started reaching out."
Operation Rule was lead by Sussex Police’s Commercial Vehicle Unit, working in partnership with the Driver & Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA) and National Highways.
It took place on Friday 5 September and targeted insecure loads and the risk they posed to drivers in Sussex and Surrey.
PC Barry Freeman of the Commercial Vehicle Unit, who ran the operation, explained:
“This operation has come about as a result of a very tragic set of circumstances. In 2022, 11-year-old Harry Dennis was killed after he was struck by an unsecured scaffold board which fell from a van in Hooe, East Sussex"
“His mother Maria approached us and asked if she could get involved in any way to help prevent incidents like this happening to anyone else, and she is the inspiration behind this really.”
“This should come as second nature – much like putting on your seatbelt every time you get in your vehicle – and should only take a matter of minutes. Those vital few minutes could be the difference in preventing death and serious injury on our roads.
Nobody goes to work to intentionally harm or kill someone. However, the reality is, unless you ensure the loads you carry are safe, you put yourself and others at risk both during your journey and when unloading.”
She hopes sharing Harry's story will encourage drivers transporting heavy goods to make more effort to ensure they're doing it safely.
"An extra couple of minutes before that journey, if the scaffolding had been secured properly, it would never have happened," Maria added.