Medal of Bravery
Awarded on: 1983-01-17
Invested on: 1983-03-04
Pierre Gagné, M.B.
Robert Provost, M.B.
Medal of Bravery
Late on the evening of 23 August 1980 Pierre Gagné and Robert Provost saw three men board a small aluminum boat from the wharf of a Verdun boat club. Some sixty-five metres from shore the boat capsized. The two headed for the spot in a motorboat, accompanied by a friend. The moment Mr. Provost noticed one victim face-down and being carried away by the strong current, he dived into the water, seized the man and held him up until a second boat came to the rescue. Meanwhile, Mr. Gagné swam to the aid of another who was frantically clinging to the gas tank of the sunken boat. The third victim had managed to hold onto the overturned boat and was pulled to safety. But for this concerted action the trio of non-swimmers would certainly have drowned.