A senior police officer died this morning while undergoing the Force’s required fitness level tests.

Police Commissioner Brigadier General Sitiveni Qiliho has confirmed that the officer was taking part in the 2.4km run when he collapsed upon nearing the end of the route.

The training instructors the Commissioner says on-site rushed the officer in a Fiji Corrections Service vehicle that was parked close by.

Attempts to revive him at the MIOT Private Hospital were futile.

However, the Commissioner says rumors have been quick to spread about the absence of the Police Medical Team at the RFL site, which is absolutely false.

He says a team from the Force Medical Unit were on site in a fully equipped Medical Ambulance.

The Medics he says were at the start of the 2.4km route when tragedy struck, and as the Corrections vehicle was nearer to where the incident occurred, officers acted immediately and enlisted the help of the nearest vehicle owner to rush the late officer to hospital.

Meanwhile, the Commissioner also confirmed the death of second police officer.

He says, the unfortunate deaths of two senior police officers this morning also suspected to be NCD related, underlines the urgency in addressing the concerns he’s repeatedly highlighted in regards to the health of the officers.

Qiliho says the force is losing more than 10 police officers to NCDs annually.

The Commissioner offered his sincere condolences to the late officers’ families.