Canning firefighter honoured for saving woman's life

BY PAT MARTIN

Deputy Chief Jeff Skaling of the Canning Volunteer Fire Department will be presented with the Nova Scotia Award for Bravery during a formal awards luncheon in Halifax Oct. 29 that will not only honour him for his bravery, but three others as well.

A special panel was chosen to review the nominees and four were chosen to receive the award, which will be presented 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. at Pier 21 in Halifax.

On a warm and restless Saturday evening this summer, Skaling went for a leisurely walk in the woods to unwind. When he returned home, he found he still couldn’t relax. He told his wife Julie he was going to go for a drive and headed for Lumsden Pond in Gaspereau.

The night was cloudy and there were no waves on the lake when he arrived around eight that evening. He observed a lone vehicle in the parking lot, but no one was around. A few moments later someone on a motorbike pulled into the lot, which turned out to be retired firefighter and friend Philip Ongo.

While chatting, Skaling noticed something unusual out on the lake and wasted no time getting out his binoculars.

It wasn’t just something floating on the water; it was someone! “All I could see was a face and bit of the hands,” Skaling said.

Not to presume the worst, the two tried several attempts to draw the person’s attention. After yelling and sounding the siren on the truck failed, Skaling grabbed his hand-held radio and they made their way down the hill toward the shore. A prompt distress call to dispatch was made. However, due to a poor radio connection, rescue efforts were hindered briefly.



Tried to reach the person with a rope

While Ongo headed back up the hill to place the call to dispatch using the more powerful radio in the truck, Skaling simultaneously got through to the 911 operators on his cellphone.

As soon as his call was placed, Skaling tried to reach the person with a rope, but was unsuccessful. He tossed down his radio and pager on the bank and waded through the shallow water until there was a sufficient depth that would allow him to swim.

“The person was a ways out,” Skaling said. “I finally reached the patient approximately 25 metres out in the water.”

Just as Skaling was bringing the female patient to shore, Wolfville Fire Captain Tommy Reading arrived at the scene and helped pull the patient out of the water.

“The patient was breathing, her eyes were open, but she was very hypothermic,” Skaling said.

Soon after helping the patient ashore, climate conditions changed, becoming less than favourable. Rain came down heavily and the wind intensified. “We tried to keep the patient warm with our jackets and blankets while waiting for the fire rescue unit,” Skaling said.

The Wolfville department responded promptly with a fire truck and an ambulance arrived also. A Stokes basket was brought down the hill. The patient was bundled and carried back up the hill to the waiting ambulance and then transported to the Valley Regional Hospital in Kentville.

Right place, right time

Being at the right place at the right time to make the frightening discovery was upsetting, but being able to save the life of another was an uplifting experience, Skaling said.

“I definitely thought someone else was directing me that night,” he added.

Skaling was not aware that R.C.M.P. Corporal Olivia Tremblay with the New Minas detachment had submitted his name to the panel until he received the news Thursday, Sept. 18.