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PEOPLE AND AWARDS

Heroes recognized

On June 9, 2009, St. John Ambulance honoured 17 Newfoundlanders and Labradorians, as well as the Crew of the CCGS Leonard J. Cowley, with Life Saving Awards for their acts of bravery at an Investiture Life Saving Awards Ceremony at the Anglican Cathedral in St. John’s.

Ian Wheeler was honoured with a Gold Life Saving Award for selfless actions that led to saving a life during the rescue operation for the Cougar Helicopter accident on March 12, 2009. Mr. Wheeler and the crew of two cougar helicopters responded to an emergency call that Cougar Flight 491 had ditched in the North Atlantic. Flight 491 had been ferrying 16 workers to the Hibernia oil platform and SeaRose FPSO off the Grand Banks when the crew reported problems. Arriving at the scene, Mr. Wheeler saw debris from the wreckage, two empty life rafts and one survivor. Without hesitation and without thought for his own safety,
Mr. Wheeler was lowered down on a hoist cable into the rough water. Securing the survivor to a lifeline, Mr. Wheeler sent the man up in his own rescue sling while he stayed, untethered, in two to three meter waves, waiting to be picked up. Once back on board, Mr. Wheeler immobilized the casualty, administered oxygen and continued to provide emergency first aid for hypothermia. Mr. Ian Wheeler, Commander in The Order of St. John, is to be commended for his courageous actions, team work and for his knowledge and use of first aid in saving the life of a casualty from Cougar Flight 491.

In addition to Mr. Wheeler, Steve LeMessurier was also recognized with a Gold Life Saving Award for his use of first aid in saving and attempting to save the lives of casualties from Cougar Flight 491.

The crew of the CCGS Leonard J. Cowley was recognized for its courageous and prompt actions in saving the lives of crewmembers from the F/V Monte Galineiro and was presented with a Gold Life Saving Award. On February 22, 2009, while patrolling the grand banks of Newfoundland, the crew of the CCGS Leonard J. Cowley was alerted by a distress call from a nearby fishing vessel. The Cowley immediately proceeded to their aid. The entire crew of the F/V Monte Galineiro was forced to abandon ship when an explosion occurred in the engine room. Fire broke out and the vessel rapidly took on water. Some crewmembers were able to don survival suits before entering the water, but some could not. As sea temperatures in the North Atlantic are extremely cold, the danger of all succumbing to hypothermia and drowning, if not rescued quickly, was real. The Cowley dispatched two rescue boats and successfully retrieved 22 people from the sea. On board, all casualties were treated for hypothermia and advanced first aid was provided to those more seriously injured. The members of the crew of the CCGS Leonard J. Cowley are to be commended for their rapid response, team work and for their knowledge and use of first aid in saving lives.

Ian Pearcey teamed with Marlene Coffey, Stephen Harrie and
Corey Ronayne who, on September 27, 2007, on Bay of Islands, off the West Coast of Newfoundland, used their first aid skills to save lives, were presented with a Silver Life Saving Award. During a mock training exercise designed to evacuate passengers from a ferry after an onboard explosion, volunteer members from the CCGS Sir Wilfred Grenfell realized that several of the other volunteer participants were actually becoming seriously ill. Exhaust fumes were seeping into the covered lifeboat that was being used in the exercise to evacuate them. Without thought for their own safety, these four individuals worked together to provide emergency first aid for asphyxiation by administering oxygen to 21 casualties. They arranged for those severely affected to be air-lifted by rescue helicopter and continued to provide ongoing care to the rest of the casualties until they could all be evacuated by high speed craft to shore for treatment. Mr. Pearcey,
Miss Coffey, Mr. Harrie and Mr. Ronayne are to be commended for their selfless actions, and for their knowledge and use of first aid in saving lives.

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SARSCENE Conference receives award

By David Day, SARVAC

On June 11, 2009, the City of St. John’s honored the SARSCENE Conference and Expo organizing committee with the city’s Admiral Award. The award recognizes conference planning committees that act as true ambassadors for the City of St. John’s. Accepting on behalf of the organizing committee were Paul Cook, NL Search & Rescue Association and Cst. Hubert Hall, Royal Newfoundland Constabulary.

Paul Cook, Mayor Dennis O’Keefe and Cst. Hubert Hall. Photo Credit: City of St. John’s

The SARSCENE Conference has grown from a small workshop into a national conference that is gaining international appeal. It is the country’s largest national Search and Rescue (SAR) conference and expo where Canadian and international SAR professionals (air, ground, marine) gather to learn about new equipment and emerging technologies, share best practices, exchange ideas and tackle issues facing SAR.

In 2008, SARSCENE was held in St. John’s Newfoundland. The National Search and Rescue Secretariat, along with the Newfoundland and Labrador Search and Rescue Association and the Newfoundland and Labrador Department of Justice, worked hard as co-hosts to develop an engaging and interactive program under the theme of Strengthening Partnerships.

SARSCENE 2008 is now behind us and it is an understatement to say that it was a resounding success. The Newfoundland weather was beautiful, the food was plenty full, the venues superb, and most importantly, the assistance of volunteers was outstanding. Needless to say, everyone departed the fair city with a smile on their face and fond memories of their visit to the City of St. John’s.

The organizing committee would like to extend a special thank you to Stephane Bachand, National Search and Rescue Secretariat, and
Ian Garland, Jodie Marc Lalonde and their team from Wilson Young Events, for being an important part of the conference’s success.

David Day is the Business Manager for the Search and Rescue Volunteer Association of Canada (SARVAC). The organization represents the
13 provincial and territorial associations and over 10,000 volunteers throughout Canada. David volunteers in his home province of Newfoundland and Labrador with Rovers Search and Rescue. To find out more on SARVAC please visit www.sarvac.ca.

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