Two men die at the scene of collision on A45 near Raunds as police referred to watchdog

Two men sadly died at the scene of a serious collision on the A45 near Raunds and the police have referred themselves to the watchdog following the incident.

The double fatal collision happened just after 1pm on Wednesday (March 1) between a car and a HGV. The road was closed in both directions for nearly 12 hours.

A 52-year-old man – the driver of the Ford - and a 40-year-old man – the driver of a DAF truck - both died at the scene.

Northamptonshire Police had “prior contact” so a mandatory referral has been made to the independent office for police conduct.

A Northamptonshire Police spokeswoman said: “At about 1.05pm yesterday (March 1), a road traffic collision took place on the A45 near Raunds involving a grey Ford Kuga and a green DAF truck.

The driver of the Ford – a 52-year-old man, and the driver of the truck – a 40-year-old man, both died at the scene.

“Due to prior police contact, a mandatory referral has been made to the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC).

“No further information is available at this time so as not to impede their enquiries,” the spokeswoman added.

A spokesperson for the Independent Office for Police Conduct said: “Following a referral from Northamptonshire Police yesterday (March 1) we have started an independent investigation into the circumstances.

"We sent investigators to the scene of the collision and the police post incident procedure to begin gathering information. Our investigation is in its very early stages.”