Shortly after midnight on March 30, 1991, Mr. Banasky rescued two adults and attempted to save two children from a house fire in Nanaimo, British Columbia. Kicking the front door open, and assisted by a friend, he helped the adults out of the house. When he was told that two children were still inside, he tried to re- enter by the front door but was unable to do so because of the heat. Mr. Banasky ran to the back, kicked open a door and forced his way through the burning kitchen to the stairway leading to the bedrooms. Halfway up the stairs, he was forced to retreat to safety. Firefighters arrived and removed the two children from the blaze. One of the young victims later succumbed to his injuries.