Manchester Arena Inquiry: Police chief 'persistently called' for aid

A police inspector has told an inquiry he thought the Manchester Arena bombing scene was safe to operate in as he "persistently called" for paramedics.

Insp Mike Smith took on the role of Greater Manchester Police (GMP) bronze commander minutes after Salman Abedi detonated a bomb on 22 May 2017.

He admitted he did not think about calling in fire and rescue crews to carry the injured away from the scene.

Insp Smith said the night was "traumatic and haunting".

Twenty-two people were killed and hundreds more injured after a homemade device exploded at the end of an Ariana Grande concert at Manchester Arena.

Insp Smith said he arrived in the foyer about 15 minutes after the bomb exploded, and then put out several radio calls for more ambulances and asked medics to come into the foyer.

He told the public inquiry into the attack that he had "discounted the possibility" of a gunman being in the room and because armed officers were there, he felt it was safe for other responders.

Insp Smith also said he asked a police colleague to "firmly tell" any North West Ambulance Service (NWAS) staff to come straight up to the foyer.

The inquiry heard his strategy was to get the injured out because he determined it was a crime scene.

Only three paramedics went into the City Room as the dying and injured were evacuated on crash barriers, noticeboards and tables, the inquiry heard.

Insp Smith accepted that using ambulance stretchers to get casualties out would have been difficult due to the flight of stairs down to the station.

The inquiry heard that by 23:07 BST the first of 38 seriously-ill people had been taken from the City Room, at a time when only 10 paramedics were able to attend the scene.

While coordinating the evacuation, the inquiry was told Insp Smith said to a GMP colleague in the foyer: "If they are obviously dead, just leave them."

Insp Smith told the inquiry: "Our role there was really to preserve life.

"It sounds very harsh and cold to say that, but what I wanted the officers there to concentrate on was on the living."

The inquiry continues.

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