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Gallantry | ||
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Awards for Gallantry
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John Christopher Butcher |
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British Empire Medal (Civil Division) | |||
| Date: | 1947 | ||
| Colliery: | Bures St. Mary, Suffolk | ||
| Occupation: | Labourer | ||
Awarded the British Empire Medal (Civil Division):—
John Christopher Butcher, Labourer, Eastern Counties Sand and Ballast Quarry, Bures St. Mary, Suffolk.
An explosion occurred in a steel pontoon situated in the Quarry lake and the pontoon was filled with burning oxygen and diesel oil. Butcher, with the skin burned off his face and hands, and almost blinded by the burning oil, attempted to reach a work-mate who had been rendered unconscious by the explosion. With his clothes on fire he climbed to the deck of the pontoon and immersed himself in the icy water. He then returned with buckets of water to throw on his mate. Despite the pain and difficulty in seeing he persisted until help arrived. He was then helped to the side and eventually taken to the shore suffering severely from burns on face, hands, arms and legs.
Butcher displayed courage and determination in difficult and dangerous conditions.
Source: London Gazette (01 Aug 1947)
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