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Gallantry | ||
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Awards for Gallantry
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Leo Patrick Powell |
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Edward Medal, Second Class | |||
| Date: | 25 Jun 1915 | ||
| Colliery: | Calgary, Alberta | ||
| Occupation: | |||
Whitehall, March 6, 1916.
His Majesty the King has been pleased to award the Edward Medal of the Second Class to Mr. John Roderick McDonald and Mr. Leo Patrick Powell under the following circumstances :—
On the 26th of June, 1915, while the Bow River, Calgary, Alberta, was in flood, a hundred-foot steel span was washed loose from a bridge in course of construction. A man named Garden was upon this span, and was precipitated into the water, which was icy cold. He managed to get hold of a baulk of timber, to which he clung. McDonald and Powell put off to the rescue in a small boat, which was used in connection with the building of the bridge. No other boats were available, as the river is too dangerous for boating, even when not in flood. They had to cross a dangerous rapid, and also to avoid collision with logs which were coming down the river in large numbers, and timber from the broken bridge. Had they been capsized they would almost certainly have been drowned, as they wore heavy hip rubber boots. They reached Garden, though he had been washed nearly a quarter of a mile down the river. He was at that time nearly unconscious owing to the coldness of the water. It was too dangerous to take him aboard the boat, and they, therefore, tied a rope round him and secured it to the boat. All three were carried about a mile and a quarter down the river, when McDonald and Powell managed to steer the boat to an island.
There can be no doubt that McDonald and Powell incurred very great danger in performing this brave rescue.
Source: London Gazette (10 Mar 1916)
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| Researchers | |
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| Researcher | Date | Interest | |
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| Shauna Quinn | 04 Sep 2016 |
Leo Powell in this story above is my great -grandfather. My grandfather (his son-in-law) who is 94 told me this story about him, and other great things he did so I was curious to find its mention and hear more. |
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