Detective Inspector Bryson Anderson. Photo: Kylie Pitt
IT IS often said that the police family is just as close as any bound by blood - and yesterday that bond grew firmer again.
To them, it's not a job, it's a life. And sometimes, that life gets taken away in the most horrific of circumstances.
''If you see a police officer today, or sometime this week - please just give them a smile, just say hello. One day they might be the one not coming home from work,'' urged the Police Association president, Scott Weber. ''Another brother in blue has paid the ultimate sacrifice. Our hearts go out to his family and he will always be deeply etched in ours.''
Those who had never met Detective Inspector Bryson Anderson mourned quietly and together, but there were others whose own private nightmare returned in an instant. News of another officer's death struck the families of senior constables Bill Crews and David Rixon hard.
The anxiety, the fear, the grief all came rushing back, just like the loved ones of every officer who has been killed in the line of duty.
To them, it never goes away, and they are left to reach out to the close-knit group of people who can only truly understand.
An emotional Mr Weber, who spoke with many members of those men's families yesterday, paid tribute to the fallen officer.
He said Detective Inspector Anderson had not only paid the ultimate sacrifice by his actions in trying to protect the community, but the force had lost a valuable member of its family.
''Not only was he well-respected due to his rank, but because of his experience,'' he said. ''He was like a brother and father to so many police officers, everyone he worked with is completely shattered by this.''
Every officer and their family lives every day with the reality that such a day might be their last but as Police Commissioner Andrew Scipione said, when it happens it is impossible to fathom. He said the entire police family was ''crying inside'', as his parents, wife and children struggled to come to terms with what had happened.
''[His family] are, as you would imagine, distraught, but taking strong support from not only their immediate family, but the police family,'' Mr Scipione said.
''There's nothing that prepares anyone for this type of event. Today I'm here farewelling an officer, talking to his family … I've got to say the strength and courage being shown inside by not only the police that are there but also the family is incredible,'' he said.
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