Two police officers save a woman from driving her car over a cliff in Alicante

Officers from the National Police saved the life of a 48-year-old woman in Alicante by stopping her from driving her car off a cliff near a well-known beach. The officers who came to her rescue were from GAC, a specialist unit trained in negotiation situations. An urgent alert from the 112 emergency call service advised that the woman's behaviour was suggesting the likelihood of self-harm.

It was the woman's son who alerted police and provided all the details of the vehicle his mother was driving, which allowed a swift search to get under way. While sweeping the local area, a patrol car located the vehicle with the engine running just a few metres from the edge of a cliff.

Both officers approached the car and saw that a woman was visibly distraught inside. Then they immediately spotted that the car was starting to move towards the cliff edge. They did not hesitate and, in a split second, they had pulled open the door on the driver side, trying to pull her out of the car despite her physical resistance. Amid the screams, they managed to pull her free from the car while it was still moving towards the precipice.

Seconds later the vehicle was stopped by the open door and the undercarriage becoming stuck in some sand, which prevented it from plunging into the sea, although one of the front wheels was left hanging in mid-air over the edge.

A handwritten farewell letter was found inside the car and it was confirmed that she had sent a final message to her son before her suicide attempt.

The woman, once away from the danger zone, was assisted by the attending medical services and taken to a nearby hospital to be kept under medical observation.