The image was so horrendous it has ruined my life

As a police officer of 20 years, I have had my share of seeing road death and wasted lives. One morning in 2004, on my way to work in a rural town, the car in front was weaving across the road. The driver was drifting off to sleep and waking again. I flashed my lights to try and get his attention. There were no other cars, just us two. I had no phone, no radio, no way of getting help. Then it happened. He drifted across the road onto the wrong side and hit the only other vehicle on the road. It was a cattle truck. He hit it right on the front corner and ruptured the petrol tank. The explosion was bigger than I've ever seen before. When I managed to stop and avoid the flames, the image was so horrendous it has ruined my life and career.

Witnessing this event was unbelievably traumatic.

The end result was he cost himself his life. He cost his family a husband and a dad. He cost his parents their only son. He cost the truck driver his sanity. He cost me my career and my normal life. He cost my family a dad without problems. He has cost the people of the state a dedicated and fair policeman.

The emptional costs to others left behind are enormous. The financial cost doesn't even matter anymore.

People thought we were dead

An ordinary afternoon, until