Vol. 136, No. 45 — November 9, 2002

GOVERNMENT HOUSE

CANADIAN BRAVERY DECORATIONS

The Governor General, the Right Honourable ADRIENNE CLARKSON, on the recommendation of the Canadian Decorations Advisory Committee, has awarded bravery decorations as follows:

Star of Courage

RICHARD JOSEPH LEWIS, S.C.
Kingston, Ontario

On March 18, 2001, Richard Joseph Lewis risked his life to rescue his 18-month-old son from a fiery death in Elginburg, Ontario. Awakened by their oldest son's cries, Mr. Lewis and his wife jumped out of bed and realized that flames and the heavy, acrid smell of smoke were spreading through the entire house. After leaving the house with their family, the couple realized that their youngest son was missing and rushed back in. When his wife became trapped, Mr. Lewis pulled her free and pushed her back out. He was then able to make his way through the blaze to his toddler's bedroom. He pulled the terrified child from his crib, wrapped him in his shirt and ran back through the raging fire to the front door. He then tossed the baby outside through a wall of flames and into his mother's waiting arms before collapsing at the doorstep, overcome by the toxic smoke. Luckily, the baby escaped unharmed, but Mr. Lewis received third degree burns to his hands, legs and feet.

Medal of Bravery

PATRICK THOMAS BARRY, M.B.
St. Brides, Newfoundland and Labrador

In the early hours of September 23, 1999, Patrick Barry saved his father from drowning when Hurricane Gertrude hit the village of St. Brides, in Newfoundland and Labrador. Patrick had gone to the wharf with his father and his brother at the height of the storm to secure their fishing boat. They had just finished tying it to other vessels when a gigantic wave broke over the protective stone wall and swept them into the debris- and diesel-fuel-covered water. Patrick and his brother managed to reach the wharf by climbing onto some vessels that were tied together, but their father found himself some fifteen metres out, desperately hanging onto a cable and clinging to the back of a boat. Although he could not swim, Patrick ran across the tied-up vessels and jumped into the raging sea. Holding onto another rope, he made his way to his father's side and tied it around his waist. Both men were then pulled out of the freezing water by other villagers who had come to assist.

Medal of Bravery

MICHEL JOSEPH SYLVIO BERTHIAUME, M.B.
Saint-Timothée, Quebec

ALLAN JAMES LONEY, M.B.
Saint-Timothée, Quebec

On September 10, 1999, Messrs. Berthiaume and Loney rescued a colleague who had been severely injured in an explosion at a chemical products plant in Saint-Timothée, Quebec. Alerted by the sound of the explosion, Messrs. Berthiaume and Loney rushed towards the victim, who had managed to escape the burning building despite his injuries and had collapsed near a two-storey brick wall which, damaged by the explosion, was leaning precariously in their direction. Ignoring the risk of the structure collapsing and the debris from the explosion falling on them, Messrs. Berthiaume and Loney carried the victim away from the building, in which hundreds of kilos of explosive powder could ignite at any moment. They then laid the man in a pick-up truck and performed first aid until help arrived.

Medal of Bravery

O.P.P. SERGEANT JOSEPH ANDRÉ DANNY BOUCHARD, M.B.
Lachute, Quebec

On January 28, 2001, while working as a civilian police officer with the United Nations Mission in Kosovo, Sgt. Bouchard, then Cst., used his body to shield a severely beaten man from a vicious mob attack. As ethnic tensions between Serbians and Albanians escalated in the city of Mitrovica, Civilian Police were called to assist other U.N. officers in dispersing an angry crowd. While dealing with this incident, Sgt. Bouchard noted another group of some thirty Serbians viciously assaulting a man with cables and metal pipes. Sgt. Bouchard fought his way through the attacking crowd and lay on top of the bleeding victim to act as a shield. Despite being assaulted and having a pistol fired near his head, Sgt. Bouchard remained with the victim until help arrived to escort the severely injured man to safety.

Medal of Bravery

CHRISTOPHER MICHAEL LIONEL ROBERT BRABANT, M.B.
Cornwall, Ontario

On July 26, 2001, sixteen-year-old Christopher Brabant put his own life at risk to save a suicidal woman from drowning in the St. Lawrence River, at the Cornwall Harbour, in Ontario. Mr. Brabant was fishing with a friend when he observed the distraught woman jump from the end of the wharf into the fast-flowing waters which rapidly carried her downstream. Without hesitation, Mr. Brabant raced to the end of the pier and jumped in after her. Battling the strong current, he swam toward the victim, some 25 metres away. As he reached her side, he grabbed hold of the semiconscious woman and began towing her back to shore, struggling to keep her head above the water. Although exhausted, he managed to reach the rocky shoreline and stayed with her until help arrived.

Medal of Bravery

SHANNON WAYNE BURNS, M.B.
Fairview, Aberta

MIKE KEHLER, M.B.
Peace River, Alberta

LISA MILLER, M.B.
Calgary, Alberta

On August 7, 1999, Shannon Burns joined Mike Kehler and Lisa Miller in rescuing two friends from drowning at Carter's Camp, in Grande Prairie, Alberta. Mr. Kehler and some friends were wading back to the mainland from a nearby island when three of the men were suddenly caught in the current and carried into deeper, turbulent waters. Although he had managed to swim out of danger, Mr. Kehler turned around and swam toward one friend in trouble some five metres from shore, but the victim disappeared under the surface before he could reach his side, and drowned. Meanwhile, Lisa Miller had entered the water and made her way to another victim who, in his panic, climbed onto her shoulders and pushed her under the surface. Alerted from a nearby boat launch, Mr. Burns swam to Ms. Miller and, although he too succumbed momentarily to the frantic flailing of the man, he managed to free himself and Ms. Miller and push the victim toward the safety of the shore. Mr. Burns was then joined by Mr. Kehler, and together they grabbed hold of the third victim and towed him to shallower water, allowing the man to pull himself to safety.

Medal of Bravery

CRAIG D'ALESSIO, M.B.
Cornwall, Ontario

RICHARD LEO GERVAIS, M.B.
Cornwall, Ontario

ROGER ALEXANDER ROY, M.B.
Cornwall, Ontario

On July 19, 1998, Craig D'Alessio, Richard Gervais and Roger Roy rescued two men trapped in a burning car in Cornwall, Ontario. Alerted by the sound of screeching tires, the rescuers ran to the scene where the out-of-control vehicle had slammed into a concrete utility pole. Gasoline was pouring from the ruptured tank and the passenger side was ablaze. Without hesitation, Mr. Roy reached in through the open driver's door and released the victim's seat belt, then he and Mr. D'Alessio pulled the dazed man to safety. Meanwhile Mr. Gervais was met by a wall of flames when he attempted to open the passenger's door. Determined to save the seriously injured man, he raced around the wreck to find that Mr. Roy had returned and crawled in through the driver's side in a desperate attempt to free the unconscious passenger. Seeing Mr. Roy's pants and shoes on fire, Mr. Gervais yanked him out of the car to allow bystanders to douse the flames with fire extinguishers. With combined efforts, Messrs. Roy, Gervais and D'Alessio then managed, on their third attempt, to pull the victim out moments before the entire vehicle was engulfed in a fireball.

Medal of Bravery

ÉRIC FORTIER, M.B.
Gatineau, Quebec

On July 27, 2001, Éric Fortier confronted a polar bear that was attacking two of his camping companions at the Soper River, in Katannilik Territorial Park Reserve, Nunavut. In the early morning hours, the bear ripped open the tent where Mr. Fortier and his partner were sleeping. Their screams drove the bear away, but the animal turned on their friends, savagely mauling them as they tried to exit their own tent and escape. Ignoring the danger, Mr. Fortier threw rocks at the animal while yelling at it in an attempt to scare it off. Seeing that his efforts were in vain, he confronted the bear and stabbed it repeatedly in the throat with a pocketknife until the wounded animal retreated into the woods. Mr. Fortier and his partner then helped their injured friends into a canoe and paddled eight kilometres across the river to find help. The victims recovered from their injuries.

Medal of Bravery

Edmonton Police Inspector DANIEL B. JONES, M.B.
St. Albert, Alberta

Cape Breton Regional Police Constable STEPHEN J. NAGY, M.B.
Sydney, Nova Scotia

R.C.M.P. Corporal KONRAD LIONEL SHOURIE, M.B.
Oshawa, Ontario

On April 29, 2000, while on a United Nations mission in Kosovo, Insp. Jones, then S/Sgt., Cst. Nagy and Cpl. Shourie rescued a fellow officer and several other civilian policemen trapped inside a building surrounded by rioters, during an incident of civil unrest in Mitrovica. After being dragged from his vehicle and assaulted by the mob, the seriously injured officer had taken refuge and radioed his position to the police station. Cpl. Shourie and Cst. Nagy, along with other members of the international contingent, joined Insp. Jones in forming a team to rescue their comrade and eleven other officers who were also in the dwelling. Armed with shields, the line of defence advanced into the mob, in spite of gunfire and the explosion of grenades close by. Reaching the building, the policemen barricaded themselves in the stairwell, barely avoiding a barrage of debris, bottles and rocks thrown at them by the rioters. The officers had just located their colleagues when French military armoured vehicles arrived to provide medical care to the wounded victim and assistance for the group's safe return to the police station.

Medal of Bravery

ALAIN LAVOIE, M.B.
Dolbeau-Mistassini, Quebec

At dusk on December 30, 2000, Alain Lavoie saved a man and a woman from drowning after the ice had given way under the weight of their snowmobile on the Mistassini River, in Dolbeau-Mistassini, Quebec. During an outing with family and friends, Mr. Lavoie saw the victims' snowmobile disappear into the frigid water some fifteen metres from shore. Grabbing a rope and a flashlight, Mr. Lavoie moved to within a few metres of the victims, who were desperately trying to get back onto the unstable surface. With the ice cracking beneath him, he threw the rope to the nearest victim who, panic-stricken, finally managed to grab hold of it after several attempts. Mr. Lavoie pulled the young woman from the water, then returned for the man who was even farther from shore. Repeating the manoeuvre, he was able to drag the man over the thin ice to a safe place, where other snowmobilers came to their aid.

LGEN (Ret'd) JAMES C. GERVAIS, C.M.M., C.D.
Deputy Secretary

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(Erratum)

AWARDS TO CANADIANS

The notice published on page 2894 of the September 28, 2002, issue of the Canada Gazette, Part I, is hereby amended as follows:

From the Government of France

LGEN (Ret'd) JAMES C. GERVAIS, C.M.M., C.D.
Deputy Secretary

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