Charles André Braun, M.B.
Peter Eric Ratchelous, M.B.
Medal of Bravery
Late on the evening of 11 August 1983, Charles Braun and Peter Ratchelous saved a man from a fiery death following a traffic accident near Hawkesbury. Returning home to Ottawa, the man lost consciousness when his car rolled into a ditch, hit a tree and caught fire. Mr. Braun, a passing motorist, stopped and was dousing the two-metre-high flames at the front of the car with a fire extinguisher when another motorist, Mr. Ratchelous, joined him at the scene. Through dense smoke they saw the driver slumped in his seat but were unable to open the car doors. Using the fire extinguisher, Mr. Braun smashed the window on the passenger side. Despite the imminent danger of an explosion, Messrs. Braun and Ratchelous repeatedly went inside the wreck and broke down the seat. They pulled the man out and carried him up the embankment seconds before the expected explosion occurred. The victim recovered from his injuries.