Medal of Bravery

• Awarded on: January 12, 1987
• Invested on: March 06, 1987

Firefighter Peter John Bos, M.B.
Firefighter David Alan Holwell, M.B.
Medal of Bravery

Battling raging flames and intense heat, Firefighters David Holwell and Peter Bos rescued two boys from a burning house in Etobicoke, Ontario, on the morning of March 20, 1985. The ground floor was completely engulfed in flames, but the two men managed to enter by a second storey window on their second attempt - the heat was so great, they had to wet themselves down with fire hoses. Visibility was nil, due to the thick smoke, and Firefighter Bos's breathing apparatus was not fully operational, but they crawled on their stomachs through the upper floor searching for the boys. Their air tanks had emptied when they located the children in a middle room. The younger was lying on the floor behind the door, the elder on a bed; both were unconscious. The firefighters were able to exit with the boys via the stairs, as the fire below had been contained and extinguished by other firefighters.