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Governor General announces eleven Decorations for BraveryFebruary 24, 2006 OTTAWA — Her Excellency the Right Honourable Michaëlle Jean, Governor General of Canada, announced today the awarding of eleven Decorations for Bravery. Recipients will be invited to receive their decorations at a ceremony to be held at Rideau Hall at a date to be confirmed. On the recommendation of the Canadian Decorations Advisory Committee (Bravery), the Governor General has announced the following awards: Medal of Bravery
The recipients’ citations are enclosed in the annex. The Decorations for Bravery were established in 1972 as part of the Canadian Honours System. The Cross of Valour is awarded for acts of the most conspicuous courage in circumstances of extreme peril. The Star of Courage is awarded for acts of conspicuous courage in circumstances of great peril. The Medal of Bravery is awarded for acts of bravery in hazardous circumstances. -30- Media information Public information
Douglas Harry Allen, M.B., Bancroft, Ontario On March 31, 2005, these five men rescued two women trapped in their submerged vehicle in the York River in Bancroft, Ontario. After witnessing the victims’ SUV plunge down an embankment and slide into the river, the rescuers jumped into the icy water to provide assistance. In a canoe he found on shore, off-duty paramedic John O’Donnell also made his way to the rapidly sinking vehicle, barely avoiding large ice floes swirling down-stream. Reaching the scene, he left the craft and, assisted by the rest of the team, helped the driver into the canoe. She was taken to shore while the passenger was pulled up onto the roof of the vehicle, which had become precariously stuck on a dune in the riverbed, a few metres away from a dam. Soon after, the second woman was helped into the canoe and brought back to safety. The victims, along with two of the rescuers, were taken to hospital where they were treated for hypothermia. Geneviève Caron, M.B., Longueuil, Quebec On July 30, 2004, paramedic Geneviève Caron rescued a wheelchair-bound woman from a burning paratransit bus in Montreal, Quebec. Despite the thick acrid smoke, Ms. Caron rushed inside the flaming vehicle to reach the trapped passenger. Unable to get the physically impaired woman out due to a jammed platform lift, Ms. Caron picked her up from her wheelchair and dragged her to the back exit door, the only escape possible from the vehicle. Helped by others, she then pulled the victim out to safety, moments before the bus was fully engulfed in flames. Téodor Gheorghe Hulbar, M.B., Saint-Hubert, Quebec Medal of Bravery On July 7, 2003, Asif Penwala, assisted by Téodor Hulbar, came to the rescue of his mother who was being assaulted by thieves in front of a foreign exchange office in Montreal, Quebec. Mr. Hulbar was shot in the back when he entered the melee in an attempt to stop two of the robbers from ripping a bag of money out of the hands of the victim. Alerted to the holdup from inside the shop, Mr. Penwala also intervened to rescue his mother but was slowed down in his efforts when he was pepper-sprayed by the fleeing assailants. Although seriously injured during the incident, Mr. Hulbar and the victim fully recovered from their wounds. René Lemaire, M.B. (posthumous), Île-du-Grand-Calumet, Quebec On June 5, 2005, 39-year-old René Lemaire lost his life while trying to rescue his seven-year-old son from drowning in the Ottawa River, near Shawville, Quebec. Mr. Lemaire was fishing with his three sons when the young victim slipped off the dock. Although he could not swim, Mr. Lemaire jumped into the four-metre-deep water but disappeared under the surface and drowned before he could save his son. Witnesses who had heard the shouting boys were able to pull the young victim to safety, but not his father, whose body was recovered by the authorities the next day. Christopher Mervin, M.B., Chatham, Ontario On November 7, 2004, Christopher Mervin risked his life to rescue three people from a burning apartment building in Strathroy, Ontario. Responding to a call for help, Mr. Mervin raced to the nearby house, which was quickly filling with smoke. Hearing the victims’ voices, he ran into the burning building to pull out a man trapped inside. He then returned into the house and, crawling on his hands and knees, located a woman and brought her out to safety. An attending police officer then entered the residence to look for more victims and quickly became overwhelmed by the heavy smoke. Mr. Mervin entered the structure a third time and pulled the disoriented officer outside to safety. David Ware, M.B., Brampton, Ontario On October 20, 2003, David Ware was injured when he went out to help a mother and her children who were being attacked by a vicious pit-bull type of dog in Brampton, Ontario. Witnessing the woman trying to pull the 60-kilogram dog off her five-year-old daughter, Mr. Ware got out of his car, closing the door hard to distract the animal. The dog finally let go of the girl but charged at Mr. Ware, jumping at his throat and biting his forearm and face. The man managed to pin the powerful dog down by the neck while the mother and her children ran for safety. The violent animal was eventually killed after being shot at three times by the police who had been alerted to the scene by an eyewitness.
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