For The Blue Mountains Fire Chief Steve Conn, his first visit to Queen’s Park will be one he long remembers.
Last week, Conn was one of 13 firefighters from across the province to receive the Ontario medal for firefighter bravery at a special ceremony hosted by Lieutenant Governor Elizabeth Dowdeswell.
Conn and the other firefighters were joined by 21 police officers from forces around the province who received the Ontario medal for police bravery at the same ceremony.
“I didn’t even know I was nominated. I was pleasantly surprised,” Conn said in an interview a few days afterwards.
The fire chief said his staff, with the support of town CAO Shawn Everitt, made the nomination.
“I was pretty humbled,” he said. “It’s the first time I’ve been at Queen’s Park. It was really well done, it was a good presentation overall.”
Conn was nominated for his bravery in helping rescue two young adults from a burning house near Craigleith Provincial Park on January 11, 2022. At the time, Conn was responding to an alarm call at a hotel at the Blue Mountain Village when the page came in for the house fire. He was on the scene within a minute of the page. The people inside the home were trapped by the blaze.
“The fire was in the crawl space, smoke and fire had cut their access off,” he said.
The chief climbed a ladder, which had been put up by the father of the two young adults, to assist the residents out of the home.
“It was the right time and the right place that I was on my way to another call,” he said.
Conn was later treated for minor smoke inhalation at the hospital and was back on the scene of the incident later that day.
“I have spent much time thinking about the constant risks and dangers that first responders face. Our province has benefitted greatly from their service, and today, we recognize the remarkable bravery of 34 police officers and firefighters from across Ontario,” Dowdeswell said in a news release. “In accepting these medals, I hope that these brave men and women will re-commit themselves to serving the public with integrity, knowing that their accomplishments will help motivate a new generation of Ontarians to join their ranks – looking to follow their example.”
Since 1975, 315 Ontario medals for police bravery have been awarded. Since 1976, 260 Ontario medals for firefighter bravery have been awarded.
