Wainfleet firefighter honoured for efforts at scene of crash
Devries’s heroics helped save the life of motorcyclist at Chambers Corners in 2017
A wainfleet firefighter who went above and beyond the call of duty at the scene of a crash in 2017 was awarded the Fire Fighters Association of Ontario Firefighter’s Medal of Merit.
Matthew Devries came upon the accident near the intersection of Forks Road West and Highway 3 (Chambers Corners) on July 14, 2017.
A 60-year-old man was driving his Harley-davidson motorcycle northbound on Regional Road
24, while a 20-year-old Pelham man was headed southbound in a Chevrolet Silverado truck when the crash occurred.
The motorcycle rider was thrown from his bike after striking the truck, which turned in front of him.
A news release from the Fire Fighters Association of Ontario said the motorcyclist suffered life-threatening injuries, including having a leg severed below the knee.
“With no medical or personal protective equipment, Devries immediately tended to the injured motorcycle driver by fashioning a tourniquet from his belt to slow the loss of blood. Within seconds of Devries’s arrival, he had secured the scene, rendered life-saving first aid and updated 911 operators,” the release said.
The motorcycle driver was airlifted to an out-of-region hospital by Ornge air ambulance.
“If not for Matt’s quick thinking and training, I do believe the driver would have died at the scene,” said Wainfleet Lieut. Jay Mous in the release.
Due to COVID-19 restrictions, Devries and two other recipients will receive their medals at a later date.
The medal of merit is awarded for an emergency event in which a firefighter or firefighters showed good judgment and/ or took a calculated risk to save a life.
Firefighters are nominated for the medal, and each nomination reviewed by the Ontario Fire Marshal, the Mutual Insurance Association of Ontario and the Fire Fighters Association of Ontario.
According to the association’s website, 55 medals of merit and citations have been awarded for 33 incidents involving firefighters from 25 fire departments across Ontario since 1983. Others who received a medal of merit or citation include Pelham Fire and Emergency Services Chief Bob Limburger in 2012 and Port Colborne Fire and Emergency Services firefighters Thomas Lasovich and John Smits in 1985.