Star of Courage

• Awarded on: January 17, 1983
• Invested on: March 04, 1983

On 22 July 1980, university student David Frazee was a summer-employed seaman on board the Coast Guard cutter Racer, which had in tow the disabled fishing vessel Sundowner. Ten kilometres south of Victoria, the latter capsized with one of the crewmen trapped inside the hold. Mr. Frazee, though not a qualified diver and using only minimum gear, did not hesitate to plunge into the choppy water. He located an open hatch, then returned to the surface. Equipped with tank and two regulators he re-entered the water, worked his way through the tangle of nets into the hold and found the fisherman pinned against the inner hull by his flotation gear. Mr. Frazee convinced him to remove the survival suit, which would have prevented him exit, relinquished his mask and guided the man out.