Medal of Bravery
Awarded on: 2007-01-25
Invested on: 2007-06-15
James Daniel Reilly, M.B.
Medal of Bravery
On December 19, 2005, off-duty firefighter James Reilly risked his life to rescue a woman from a burning house in Etobicoke, Ontario. As he was driving by, Mr. Reilly noticed smoke billowing from the house and stopped to investigate. After calling 911, he knocked on the door to alert the lone occupant. Receiving no response, he kicked down the locked door and crawled into the house but was quickly forced out by the heavy smoke. Undeterred, he raced back inside the flaming building. Feeling around blindly, he located the unconscious victim and attempted to pull her outside but, overwhelmed by the choking fumes, retreated from the house again. Mr. Reilly charged into the structure a third time, managed to dislodge the woman, whose leg had become stuck in the doorway, and dragged her outside. Tragically, despite Mr. Reilly's best efforts, the victim did not survive.