Neil Harper, Kareem Foster, Michael Postlethwaite get bravery medals
Three Nova Scotians were awarded the Governor General Medal of Bravery this week for quick-thinking actions that saved lives three years ago.
A Halifax sailor was awarded the Medal of Bravery for protecting the crew of HMCS Iroquois.
Master Seaman Neil Harper was working on the ship at the Halifax dockyard on Sept. 12, 2011, as the crew prepared the ship to sail.
One of the crew noticed a high-pressure fuel leak from an engine. Harper looked into it and found a broken fuel line spraying high-pressure fuel onto a combustion chamber and the exhaust.
Such a leak is rare and very dangerous, and could have ended in catastrophe. Harper sprang into action.
Quick action
"I opened up the enclosure and got into the enclosure to direct the fuel elsewhere so that it wouldn't spray any of that high-pressure fuel onto those two hot sections, thus preventing the possibility of a fire," he said.
Harper's citation said he put his life at risk to stop "an alarming diesel fuel leak."
On Tuesday, Governor General David Johnston awarded him the Medal of Bravery in Ottawa. The medal was created in 1972 to recognize people who risk their lives to try to save or protect the lives of others.
Harper downplayed the severity of the situation to his wife.
"When she found out that I was getting the Medal of Bravery, and when she found out there was more to it than that, she'd be like, 'Why did you do that? You could've gotten yourself hurt,'" he said.
"I didn't think of it as that way. I just did what I needed to do."
The Iroquois is now mothballed and will be retired next year. Harper is back at school, upgrading his skills and awaiting his next assignment.
Pair honoured for saving woman from fire
Kareem Foster and Cpl. Michael Postlethwaite also received Medals of Bravery at the ceremony. They rescued an elderly woman from a burning apartment in Sydney in December 2011.
Foster and Postlethwaite entered through a broken window and found the woman in need of assistance. After they carried her outside, Postlethwaite re-entered the building to search for other possible victims.
He was forced to retreat as the smoke and flames engulfed the house.
There were no serious injuries.
