Last winter a colleague coming from the car park to the office stopped to help someone who had slipped on black ice and broken her hip. He gave her his coat to keep her warm and waited till the ambulance arrived.

The number of colleagues who walked past him and came into the office saying “Ken is helping a woman who has fallen. He’s given her his coat. He must be freezing!”

So, you all walked past him and didn’t give him your coat while you walked the three minutes to the office?

That’s just what makes British people so wonderfully quirky and understated. Just now I misjudged the closing of a train door and got caught really hard on the head. It must have been obvious that it hurt (OK, not the biggest calamity in the world) but I stumbled into the carriage and nobody batted an eyelid. Nobody asked “you alright?” Cvnts.

OK – you can wipe away that tear now …

Good on you for doing the right thing….

I had my faith in humanity restored few years back I went down hard on a rdbt on a dry day(diesel) on road .. Result was shattered scapula(still my sorest break by a long shot) 2 vehicles stopped a car and a van .. Van took my bike and car took me home followed by van …

Was only few miles from home thankfully but never got names of good Samaritans but placed a thank you ad in local paper in case …

Other side of the coin I went down on another roundabout year or so later greasy road .. My rear light pinged off no damage to me bar bruises/skin off and I heard the revving of an engine right behind me I quickly jumped up grabbing bits of light and made eye contact with motorist to acknowledge a bit of thanks for not running me over …

Jeez he looked at me like vermin as I was holding him up then tore off shaking his head 🙄

For me this kind of behaviour is most apparent, most often, when people react to mentally ill people in public places.

Pointing and deriding someone having an episode, for example out in the middle of winter in a dressing gown putting one’s shoes in and out of a skip, is not being decent.

I appreciate most people would find these situations intimidating, but I’m continually shocked by the lack of engagement.

I was knocked off a pedestrian/cycle path by a motorist who drove straight out of his gate and across the path without looking, leaving me with a broken hand, cuts, bruises and a bashed up bike. I forced him to give me his insurance details. His passenger then got out and said “Right, you’ve said sorry. I need to get to work”. They just drove off and left me standing there. No offer of help, or any concern about what I was going to do next. Some people just don’t care.

Good on you for helping the poor lad.

A few weeks ago I’d just got home in the car and as I was putting the key in the house door I heard a screetch and a thump. I ran to the road to find a chap untangling himself from his bike. He’d been riding along and suddenly slipped on something was dumped on the kerb. Poor guy couldn’t work out what had happened, it was just him, his bike, the kerb and the cycle lane.

I brought him in for some tea and biscuits and he washed the gravel out of his palms. He was still a bit shaken 20 min later when he walked home, 200m up the road.

I shudder to think what it’s like to be hit by a car.

Spoke to the boys dad last night, he’s on the mend and having an op today. Still can’t remember a thing.

The amazing thing was he couldn’t remember the passcode to unlock his phone but he could give me his home number so I could call home. His dad said he has trouble remembering that at the best of times.

Police were there this morning stopping cars and it was on the local news website so hopefully the driver will be caught.

Story is now on the bbc site so hopefully the driver will be caught.

Boy injured in hit and run

A few years ago above Cilcain,near Mold, Merida,cycle race, chap went over the bars broke wrist he said, so i walked him and his bike to nearest road, probably about 100 cyclists in the race passed us going the other way, and almost all of them slowed or stopped and asked if we where ok, First Aid marshal, then picked him and took him to hospital.

Gary_M – Member
I was first to him then a woman came to help but every other **** just drove on.

If 2 people were already attending him I’d just walk by, me standing around aimless isn’t going to help things.

When my mother worked in a supermarket there was an old fella had a heart attack in the store so they cordoned off the area while the first aiders tried to help him until the ambulance arrived, needless to say some customers voiced their concerns that this was a major inconvenience to their shopping.

My response to such people would probably get me on a disciplinary or the sack.

If 2 people were already attending him I’d just walk by, me standing around aimless isn’t going to help things.

As I’ve already said people drove by before I got to the child. I wouldn’t have expected everyone to get out their cars to help after he was being attended to, but I also wouldn’t expect people to squeeze their car between a kerb and an injured person on the road either.

Why would you expect anybody else to stop (unless they were a doctor/nurse etc. who could add something over and above what the lad was already receiving)?

if you don’t stop, how do you know whether or not you could ‘add something’ over and above what is already at hand. For all you know the person already attending may not have a mobile phone/no reception and hasn’t called for help.

Why would you assume you can’t help?

Thank goodness you did Gary, well done. I like to think I would do the same thing.
I have stopped and offered people lifts when they are are walking along a stretch of road that has no bus stops/house etc and are clearly walking a couple of miles to the end of it (Brimstage road being an example) I have also stopped near bus stops when I have seen young children (stupid parents!) waiting for busses alone etc and watched until they got on the bus. Is it bizarre? As a parent I feel protective of children but I suspect it would be difficult to explain to observers. Am I the only one?

f 2 people were already attending him I’d just walk by, me standing around aimless isn’t going to help things.

Your attempts at being a smart arse are clouding your ability to read. I dont think we are talking about rubber necking here but I think the human response is to see if there is anything you can do first then bugger off if you are surplus to requirements.

When I was at school(70/80’s)we were warned about that London place usually with the example that if you fell down in the street nobody would help just walk on by.

I imagine the UK as a whole now is a lot more insular London was then.

That said I reckon someone laid in the road injured would bring traffic to standstill pretty quickly just about anywhere in my town.

jon1973 – Member

if you don’t stop, how do you know whether or not you could ‘add something’ over and above what is already at hand. For all you know the person already attending may not have a mobile phone/no reception and hasn’t called for help.

Why would you assume you can’t help?

I dont imagine the poster will have time to answer in their incredibly busy and important life, afteral they wouldnt stop to help and dont even have time to read the OP post properly.

but I also wouldn’t expect people to squeeze their car between a kerb and an injured person on the road either.

I’ve seen this, very busy road with not many cars actually going anywhere anyway but no-one was getting out of their car to help a guy lying in the road (tho after I stopped to help another guy got out of his car to assist.
Turned out to be a heavily intoxicated bloke so TBF people may have seen him stumbling about then fall but not wanted to get involved with an obviously drunk person – but even so pretty harsh behaviour from fellow human beings.
Driving around a youngster lying in the road obviously in pain is ****ing appalling.

If 2 people were already attending him I’d just walk by, me standing around aimless isn’t going to help things.

The 2 people attending might need your help. How would you know without asking?

I posted the other week about my missus helping a motorcycle crash that happened right in front of us.

We were fortunate that LOTS of people stopped and did useful non-medical things like warning and controlling the other traffic, clearing debris, bringing blankets and jackets, consoling the uninjured driver and the victim’s relatives, directing ambulances etc.

(And yes, there were a few tw**s that beeped their horns and tried to squeeze though! 😐 )

Turned out to be a heavily intoxicated bloke so TBF people may have seen him stumbling about then fall but not wanted to get involved with an obviously drunk person

Worth pointing out that a hypoglycaemic diabetic can look a lot like a drunk person, but the consequences can be very bad if no one realises.

But even if he is just pissed, leaving him to his fate lying in the middle of the road is pretty harsh!

I helped a lady on the tube once who collapsed, she was very pregnant and for a short time had no pulse. Eventually one other person reluctantly helped me get her comfortable. I pulled the chain and someone punched me as they would be late for work. Lowest. Point. Ever.

Macinblack are you serious?!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I remember the motorcyclist lying half in a 40mph dual carriageway/lights junction with me and a bus driver over him whilst all his passengers sat on the bus and others just stared.

Recently a woman sat frozen shaking at the wheel with nerves as she couldn’t drive any further in the snow over the moors with cars passing her and her two young sons by. Her poor husband had to drive from Burnley 20miles to come and get them!

On the above though 300m’s down the road a woman had ploughed on straight on down a banking and a Toyota Hi-lux was bouncing around trying to tow it out with two other cars parked alongside assisting. So there were people ‘on scene’helping people out.

NZCol – **** hell fire.

GrahamS – Member
The 2 people attending might need your help. How would you know without asking?

Could probably assess the situation quite easily from a distance tbh. If I felt I could help, I’d help, if not I’d carry on.

fwiw, I’ve helped people in the past, not like I wouldn’t help if needed! 😆

Could probably assess the situation quite easily from a distance tbh.

Of course. Silly me. I forgot to take into account your psychic ability 🙄

NZCol I remember on the tube in London you could count the amount of times on one finger how many people would give their seat up to a pregnant, older etc fellow passenger.

Story is now on the bbc site so hopefully the driver will be caught.

I forgot you were local to me Gary, I heard about this this morning. Hope he’s on the mend.

I passed a queue of traffic that was held up at some lights near me last year. The driver at the front was slumped over the wheel, but no one behind could see and were just (somewhat understandably) beeping their horns after he failed to move through a full cycle of the lights.

I stopped as quickly as I could on the other side of the road, blocking one lane of traffic on my side…then ran back down towards the guy (who I presumed had had a heart attack or similar). However, as I approached his car, it started moving and he drove off! I couldn’t believe it! Everyone must have thought I was some mentalist for running down the middle of all the traffic, then about turning and running back again 🙂

Glad he was OK mind you (and that I didn’t have to attempt any ropey first aid)

If you go directly to the emigration thread that was the net result of the incident – 3 weeks later I had moved to NZ as I needed some perspective on life. It was quite sad really. She was OK once i managed to track her down.

GrahamS – Member
Could probably assess the situation quite easily from a distance tbh.
Of course. Silly me. I forgot to take into account your psychic ability

From across the street, I could easily look and see a guy lying with a broken leg, one person talking to injured person, and someone on their phone to an ambulance.

In that situation, what do you expect me to do? It’s covered as far as I can tell.

You seem to think I have some kind of super human broken bone healing powers! 😆

yeh he’s on the mend peterfile. Having an op on his wrist today and obviously very sore but he’s okay.

I’ve just got the exact time I was at the scene from the garmin file of my ride so passed that to the police. Driver of car in front saw him walking, I saw him lying on the road so I know it happened at that exact time. I was looking behind as I move to the outside lane at that point so must have happened as I was moving over.

Hopefully it’ll prove useful.

In that situation, what do you expect me to do? It’s covered as far as I can tell.

ASK THEM if they need help so you KNOW if it is covered, rather than just guessing?? 😯

What he said for obvious reasons

GrahamS – Member
In that situation, what do you expect me to do? It’s covered as far as I can tell.
ASK THEM if they need help so you KNOW if it is covered, rather than just guessing??

And just get in the road? I have a brain, I can tell if someone is competent or not.

A few weeks ago I was walking through Bank tube station in the evening rush hour. One half of the circular corridor just below ground level was blocked off by a couple of staff asking people to go the other way round the loop.

About 10 metres away someone was being given CPR by a couple of emergency staff, clearly visible to me and anyone else nearby. Despite this, people were queueing up to abuse the staff members asking them to re-route (which took an extra 30 seconds).

And just get in the road? I have a brain, I can tell if someone is competent or not.

Wait.. so you are saying in your fictional scenario that the road might be dangerous? Sounds like those 2 people could really do with an extra pair of hands to warn the traffic and keep them safe.

I’m sure someone else will be along in a minute. Walk on by.

GrahamS – Member
And just get in the road? I have a brain, I can tell if someone is competent or not.
Wait.. so you are saying in your fictional scenario that the road might be dangerous? Sounds like those 2 people could really do with an extra pair of hands to warn the traffic and keep them safe.

I’m sure someone else will be along in a minute. Walk on by.I’m sure the person on the phone can multitask! 😆

You’re a bit touchy about this, don’t you understand the concept of assessing a situation, if I felt I could help I would, if not, I walk on by.

I honestly don’t understand your issue with that.

Your a bit touchy about this,

We are disappointed that you did not help that is not “being touchy”. You did not just let yourself down you let all of STW down.

I am impressed by your long range ability to asses situations without asking the people involved I hope it better than your arguments and jokes 😉

don’t you understand the concept of assessing the situation

I do – and that would involve speaking to people, not guessing.

I honestly don’t understand your issue with that.

Then this whole thread must be bewildering to you.

we’ll agree to disagree.

TBH I’ve passed by a couple of situations – both times in the car.

Both times my young son has been in the car and I deemed him to be of greater importance as there were already other civies there helping. You have to call it quickly- stop, you contribute to a problem and block emergency services etc. Also- how can you stop your own passengers becoming a risk/at risk to rubberneckers?

Bit of an update, driver has been reported to the PF. So thats good news.

Man reported over Newton Mearns hit-and-run which hurt boy