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Mr. Michel Joseph Sylvio Berthiaume

Saint-Timothée, Quebec

Decorations for Bravery

  • Medal of Bravery

    Awarded on: 2002-04-18
    Invested on: 2002-12-09
    Michel Joseph Sylvio Berthiaume, M.B. Allan James Loney, M.B. Medal of Bravery On September 10, 1999, Messrs. Berthiaume and Loney rescued a colleague who had been severely injured in an explosion at a chemical products plant in Saint-Timothée, Quebec. Alerted by the sound of the explosion, Messrs. Berthiaume and Loney rushed towards the victim, who had managed to escape the burning building despite his injuries and had collapsed near a two-storey brick wall which, damaged by the explosion, was leaning precariously in their direction. Ignoring the risk of the structure collapsing and the debris from the explosion falling on them, Messrs. Berthiaume and Loney carried the victim away from the building, in which hundreds of kilos of explosive powder could ignite at any moment. They then laid the man in a pick-up truck and performed first aid until help arrived.