Queensland Police Service honours fallen officers on National Police Remembrance Day 2022
Grey North Queensland skies turned clear as police honoured fallen officers from throughout the State, Australia and the wider Pacific on Thursday. See the pictures.
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Grey North Queensland skies turned clear as police honoured fallen officers from throughout the State, Australia and the wider Pacific on Thursday.
Acting Inspector Mark Camilleri of Townsville addressed members of Queensland Police, dignitaries, fellow emergency responders and representatives of government and community organisations who had gathered at the Holy Trinity Anglican Church Ingham to mark National Police Remembrance Day.
“It is important that we come together in any way we can during these current conditions to honour the memory and the sacrifice of all our fallen officers,” he said.
“We stand together and reflect in honour of them and their loved ones and acknowledge the unimaginable loss they have suffered.”
Some 148 Queensland Police Service officers have fallen in the line of duty since 1861, including Senior Constable David Masters from Deception Bay who was hit and killed attempting to lay road spikes across the Bruce Highway in June last year.
Inspector Camilleri said every officer took a “considerable risk every day they go to work in the name of making Queensland safe”.
“The honourable commitment they make every day deserves to be recognised; hence the importance of this date for us as a service,” he said.
“Together, we pause, we reflect, and we honour those who have served before us or alongside us who made the ultimate sacrifice.”
He said National Police Remembrance Day also allowed QPS to stand alongside their counterparts throughout Australia as they also honoured their fallen.
“This includes Victoria Police Senior Constable Bria Kathleen Joyce who died in a car crash at Mildura, Victoria, on April 8, 2022,” he said.
“Her vehicle was struck head-on, by another vehicle whose driver drove onto the wrong side of the road.”
In addition, 14 historical names – 10 from Tasmania and three from the Northern Territory – were added to the National Police Memorial in Canberra.
Inspector Camilleri said 2022 also marked the significant anniversaries of nine QPS officers, including 60 years since the death of Constable Douglas Wrembeck who was struck by a vehicle in South Brisbane.
“Our thoughts are especially with the families and friends of these officers today,” he said.
“Their deaths continue to be a reminder of how quickly things can change in our job, no matter our experience, our location, our skill or our level of courage.
“We will never forget them. With honour they served.”
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Originally published as Queensland Police Service honours fallen officers on National Police Remembrance Day 2022
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