BRAVE police officers and members of the public who averted tragedy with their quick-thinking actions were today being commended by Chief Constable David Kenworthy.

On his last working day with the North Yorkshire Police force, Chief Constable Kenworthy was presenting awards, including one to a woman who prevented a coach full of sick children and their carers from crashing on the A64 at York after the driver collapsed at the wheel.

Margaret Brooks, of Middlesbrough, and another woman who will be honoured at a future ceremony, were sitting near the front of the coach when they saw the driver slump in his seat, apparently unconscious, as the coach was travelling at 60 to 70 miles per hour.

The two women reacted instantly, reaching over the driver to grab the wheel while shouting for help.

They managed to keep the coach, which was still accelerating, on the road until an off-duty police officer on the coach dragged the driver clear and brought the coach to a halt.

Mrs Brooks was receiving a certificate of appreciation.

Two York officers were being commended for their efforts after bringing a potential violent siege to a end in Skelton, York.

PCs Russ Harper and Nicky Durkin were called to the house in January after a man suffering from a mental illness barricaded himself in a bedroom while armed with a knife and threatening to harm himself.

They engaged him in conversation for two hours until persuading him to come out peacefully without injury.

And two Harrogate officers who were injured while trying to stop an armed robbery suspect escape in a car were being commended for their bravery and the quality of their investigation.

In October 2001 DC Mark Willock and PC Mark Waddington began inquiries to trace the suspect and eventually located him driving his car from a supermarket car park in the town.

They tackled him and attempted to arrest him as he drove off, both officers being injured in the process.

The man escaped but was later arrested and was subsequently jailed for eight years.

Other awards were being presented to four officers who dealt with a serious accident on the A1 at Boroughbridge in March, and PC John Trueman was also commended for tackling and disarming a man with a knife and Northallerton.

Updated: 09:42 Friday, October 11, 2002