Medal of Bravery

• Awarded on: June 13, 1988
• Invested on: August 19, 1988

On Christmas night 1986, Peter Hays rescued his grandmother and great-aunt from a burning house in Edmonton, Alberta. The two elderly women were in bed when Mr. Hays, an asthmatic, smelled smoke, but upon careful investigation, could not locate a source. As the smoke thickened in the house, Mr. Hays went outside and noticed flames and smoke pouring out of the roof. He quickly got a wet towel, went upstairs to the room where his grandmother was sleeping and carried her downstairs where other family members took her to the safety of neighbours. Running upstairs again and finding the smoke and heat too intense, he ran outside, grabbed a broom and climbed up the fire escape to another bedroom. Breaking the window with the broom handle, he crossed the empty room and hallway and entered his great-aunt's room. He carefully guided her to the fire escape and helped her climb to the bottom where firemen then assisted her to the ground. The quick-thinking and clear- headedness of Mr. Hays prevented that night from becoming a very tragic Christmas.