A policeman who was swept to his death in the Cumbrian floods had devoted himself to helping others cope with tragedy, mourners were told yesterday.

PC Bill Barker (44) was commended for the support and compassion he showed as a Family Liaison Officer (FLO) to grieving families who had lost loved ones suddenly in road accidents. Around 500 people who packed into his funeral service in his home town of Egremont were told it was ironic that his “beloved family” had to experience the very procedures that he perfected.

Detective Constable Jim Rooney, a friend of PC Barker, told mourners: “As a former FLO myself I can say without fear of contradiction that Billy was the best FLO in the whole organisation. His passion for the role was unstoppable.”

Many people stood in silence outside St Mary and St Michael Church to pay their final respects as the funeral cortege wound its way slowly through the small town with six motorcyclists and former colleagues from Cumbria Police's Roads Policing Unit (RPU) accompanying the hearse.

PC Barker was directing motorists away from Northside Bridge in Workington when it collapsed.

The father-of-four plunged into the swollen waters of the River Derwent in the early hours of last Friday.