Medal of Bravery

• Awarded on: May 7, 1984
• Invested on: July 09, 1984

In the afternoon of 7 February 1981, a member of the Canadian Ski Patrol System, William Albert Tidsbury, knowingly risked his life to rescue a thirteen-year-old boy from a deep sink hole at the Snow Valley Ski Hill near Fernie, British Columbia. Two teenagers were skiing in an area above the groomed slopes when one boy fell into the hole and disappeared. In response to an emergency call, Mr. Tidsbury and four other patrollers hurried to the scene. Using a makeshift harness and a rappelling system made with equipment carried by the patrollers, Mr. Tidsbury lowered himself fifteen metres into the narrow shaft and reached a ledge where the young boy had come to rest. The strong wind blowing over the unstable five-metre high snow overhang created an imminent threat of an avalanche. Despite the danger, Mr. Tidsbury took off his harness, tied it to the youngster and instructed the patrollers to pull the boy to safety while he remained on the ledge. He was later brought safely to the surface.