Medal of Bravery
Awarded on: 2000-09-28
Invested on: 2001-02-02
On May 2, 1999, Danny Béchard rescued a mother and her ten-month-old daughter following a motor-vehicle accident near Mont St-Grégoire, Quebec. Mr. Béchard was riding his motorcycle with a friend when he witnessed a van hit a car and flip onto the driver's side into a ditch, its motor still revving at high speed. Knowing that a couple and their little girl were trapped inside the van which contained an all-terrain-vehicle and extra gasoline containers, Mr. Béchard climbed onto the wreck, grabbed the baby through the broken passenger's window and handed her to another man who carried her away. He then helped the woman out of the van as the driver scrambled out on his own. Preparing to following the couple to safety, Mr. Béchard was caught in the ball of fire that suddenly engulfed the entire vehicle and suffered burns to his face and to his left arm.