At around this time, PS Morgan arrived on the perimeter track having responded to the radio requests for assistance. In his 1989 account, he said that as he arrived, he saw Supt Murray, who seemed deeply shocked and told him simply to “do whatever you can”. PS Morgan said that as he reached the pens, he immediately saw the horror of the situation but also noted a lack of organisation in the police response: “I quickly realised that I would be able to achieve very little if I remained on the track. A lot of officers were standing looking at the scene in stunned disbelief”. He decided to enter the centre pens from the tunnel at the rear, so that he could get supporters to move back, or out, and reduce the crush. He ordered some officers to come with him.
He found no problems getting through the tunnel but when he reached the pens, spectators and police officers there appeared to have no idea what was happening. He went into the pens and tried to persuade supporters to leave. He said: “I was obliged to grab each person and haul them backwards, just shouting, ‘Get out’ to each one as I progressed towards the front. Many were in deep shock and resisted me, pulling away and refusing to co-operate. The crowd was not densely packed and I was able to move quite freely.”
While PS Morgan’s actions may have had some positive impact, they were not coordinated with any other part of the rescue effort, and he did not communicate his intent to the PCB or any senior officer. Other officers also took action without seeking to coordinate them, adding to the sense of disorganisation at the heart of the police response.
