Markham Kerry Bausman, M.B.
Rick Wayne MacInnis, M.B.
Dustin Scott Blaine MacPhee, M.B.
Medal of Bravery
On April 19, 1997, near Fox Creek, Alberta, Markham Bausman, Rick MacInnis and 13-year-old Dustin MacPhee helped passengers to escape a bus that had caught fire after being hit by a pick-up truck carrying diesel fuel. Soaked in fuel, the driver and 28 passengers were trapped inside the burning bus. As people trampled each other, Messrs. Bausman and MacInnis kicked open windows and helped others to get out. Both men then turned their attention to people on fire or trapped inside. With the fire raging out of control, Mr. MacInnis guided two panicked women out of the bus, then noticed another victim whose legs were pinned between seats. Realizing that the only way to escape the inferno was to break her foot, the woman allowed Mr. MacInnis to do so as he pulled her free. Mr. MacInnis then suffered severe burns while trying in vain to save another woman lying on the road, in flames in a pool of fuel. Meanwhile, Mr. Bausman tended to passengers on fire and was attempting to extinguish with snow the burning body of a woman when he noticed that Dustin MacPhee was at risk. Dustin, his shoe on fire, was desperately trying to free the crushed legs of the bus driver. Mr. Bausman grabbed the boy and pulled him away. Tragically, when he returned for the driver, the man was covered in flames and could not be saved.