Medal of Bravery

• Awarded on: April 3, 1997
• Invested on: May 15, 1998

Joel Leal Filipe, M.B.
Durval Linhares, M.B.
Joaquim Amaral Marques, M.B.
Robert Allister Porter, M.B. (deceased)
Medal of Bravery

On September 11, 1995, four men saved the lives of two seriously wounded workmen after a natural gas pipe exploded in Etobicoke, Ontario. Messrs. Filipe, Linhares and Marques were working at a street construction site when a massive explosion blew two of their co-workers, who were in a protective metal cage, out of the construction hole. Dazed by the shock of the explosion and the deafening sound of the escaping gas, Mr. Linhares found one victim trapped in the cage dangerously close to the leak. He was joined by Mr. Filipe and together, they attempted to pull the man out with the help of a pole. Unsuccessful, they searched further through the debris and discovered that the other severely wounded man was lying across the first victim's legs. With the help of Mr. Porter, who had arrived on the scene from a nearby office building, Messrs. Linhares and Filipe dragged the first man safely across the intersection. Meanwhile, Mr. Marques had managed to free the second victim and began moving him a safe distance away when Messrs. Filipe and Porter returned to help.