Medal of Bravery
Awarded on: 1988-04-05
Invested on: 1988-06-10
Late in the night of August 2, 1986, a group of people were having a party aboard a chartered yacht cruising Lake Ontario between Ontario Place and Toronto Island. One man stumbled, fell over a knee-high railing into the water and was left behind in the wake. The captain of the vessel immediately came about and returned to find him. One of the guests threw a life-ring to the man but it fell short, so the captain jumped into the dark water to attempt to rescue the victim. Mr. Rzeplinski, another guest on the yacht, dived into the water to help. He swam forty metres to the victim, only to find him unconscious, face-down in the lake. He revived him, wedged him firmly into the life-ring with his arms through the ropes, then pushed and pulled the semi-conscious man towards the boat. By the time the vessel was able to approach close enough to the men in the water to pull them aboard, they were able to retrieve the victim and Mr. Rzeplinski, but no trace of the captain could be found.