Sergeant Stephen Claude Joseph Bates, M.B., C.D
Gander, Newfoundland and Labrador
On October 2, 2014, search and rescue technician Sergeant Stephen Bates risked his life while evacuating an ailing man from a fishing vessel, in severe weather conditions off the coast of Yarmouth, Nova Scotia. Sergeant Bates was preparing to extract the man by helicopter when the hoist cable became tangled in the boat’s hydraulics. Struggling against strong winds, he succeeded in freeing the cord. Sergeant Bates and his team were then able to remove the man from the ship and transport him to shore.