Men honoured for their bravery
When others were running away from the burning car, Bruce Knocton ran toward it.
Knocton, a sheriff’s deputy, came across a life-and-death situation while making a familiar highway run between jails in Halifax and Pictou County.
“We saw brake lights, we saw debris flying in the air,’’ said Knocton, who was behind the wheel of a van transferring six inmates on the evening of Oct. 12.
What happened next would see Knocton recognized Tuesday with Nova Scotia’s Medal of Bravery during a ceremony at the provincial legislature.
Knocton said he and his sheriff partner, Samantha Martin, put on their flashing emergency lights and were able to drive toward the crash at a highway exit near Truro.
“When we got there one car was on fire, the hood was all caved in and the flames were shooting about three or four feet out of the hood,’’ said Knocton.
After radioing for help, Knocton said the pair ran toward the burning vehicle with fire extinguishers.
“At this point people were running away from the vehicle saying, ‘It’s going to blow, It’s going to blow,’’’ he said. “Sam went to deal with the elderly guy in the other vehicle and I attended to the car that was on fire.’’
After emptying the fire extinguisher, Knocton said he sent a bystander to get another one at a nearby gas station. As smoke continued to roll from the vehicle, he said, he looked inside and saw that the airbags had deployed.
“There was an elderly lady slumped over the console, she was face down and unconscious,” he said. “By this time the flames had started back up again so I said, ‘I’ve got to get this woman out of here.’’’
Knocton said another man came back from the gas station with a fire extinguisher, which was used to douse the flames as he crawled into the car and attempted to stabilize the seriously injured woman.
Knocton stayed with the victim until she could be extracted by paramedics, who took her to hospital. She was later airlifted to a Halifax hospital where she eventually made a full recovery.
The 54-year-old Knocton, a resident of Milford, said before working as a sheriff’s deputy he spent 15 years as an auxiliary police officer and had previous experience at accident scenes.
Also recognized was Paul Rowe, who was enjoying a cup of tea with his wife Nov. 3, when he responded to a crash in the ocean near his home that saw him help pull a woman to safety from a submerged car.
Jules Dufour of Halifax and Kevin Tough of West Pennant, who didn’t know one another, were responsible for rescuing a young man and two pets after knocking down the door of a burning home in Halifax on March 7.
For the past 11 years, the province has awarded its bravery medal to people who have risked their lives protecting the lives and property of others.