999 firefighter faces careless driving charge

A FIREFIGHTER whose engine collided with a van on its way to a 999 call will appear before magistrates next week charged with careless driving.
By The Newsroom
Published 28th Apr 2005, 17:07 BST
Updated 8th Jun 2018, 00:59 BST

Giuseppe Sacco is accused of causing the accident on Broadwater Road at the junction between Cecilian Avenue and Northcourt Road on October 31.

Sacco, 39, is expected to deny the charge and a date is due to be set for his trial when he appears at Worthing Magistrates' Court on May 6.Darren Worden, 21, from Somerset, was left unconscious when his white Ford Transit van was flung into central reservation metal railings.

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He spent almost a week at Worthing Hospital with a fractured pelvis, two cracked ribs and cuts and bruises.

The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) is expected to blame Sacco for the crash by alleging he passed through a red light on the way to a road crash in Heene Road, Worthing.

The Fire Brigades Union (FBU) has chosen not to support Sacco because driving through a red light is against its policy.

Andy Hockley, FBU representative for Worthing, said: "Our policy on red lights is we don't go through them, although the union knows it goes on. If they supported Mr Sacco they would be seen to encourage it."

Gary Towson, spokesman for West Sussex Fire and Rescue, said: "I am aware that the charge has been brought, which will be contested.

"Pending the legal proceedings, we can't comment any further."