OPP honours bravery by officers and civilians in northern Ont. awards ceremony

OPP honour police and civilian heroes OPP held a ceremony in Powassan to recognize police and civilians for going above and beyond the call of duty for bravery.

Cedric Ouellette, 17, is proof you don't need a gun or a badge to be a hero.

On Sept. 24, 2020, when he was 14, Ouellette was riding his bicycle in Kapuskasing when he saw flames erupt from a basement in a nearby home.

"I waited and I was thinking what to do," he said.

"I opened the front door and whole bunch of smoke came out of the door."

Thinking on his feet, he shouted to see if anyone was inside and heard someone coughing. After telling a neighbour to dial 911, he went around to the back of the house.

There, he found a broom and used it to break a basement window. Ouellette and the neighbour yelled into the window and found a coughing man trapped in the basement.

When fire crews arrived on scene, he alerted them immediately to what was happening and they rescued the man.

"I was happy for what I did. It happened really quickly," Ouellette said.

"I just had to think and don't panic and think quickly about the decision."

He and more than 100 police officers and civilians were presented with awards from OPP Commissioner Thomas Carrique for their years of service or for acts of bravery and lifesaving in a special ceremony Wednesday in Powassan.

'THESE ARE SPECIAL DAYS'

"These are special days when we do our awards ceremonies because it exemplifies the best of what we do and the communities each and every day," Carrique told reporters after the ceremony.

Among the recipients is Const. Nathalie Muirhead. Muirhead was off duty when she and her niece Hannah saved a man after he attempted to take his life by jumping over a bridge overpass railing.

Hannah called 911 and kept the communications centre updated throughout the incident so help could be dispatched.

"I'm so proud of her and I guess I'm proud of myself, I guess," said Muirhead.

She ended up wrestling the man to the ground to prevent him from jumping. He was taken to hospital where he said Muirhead's actions saved his life.

"I was able to help someone in their time of need. It was thankfully, a successful outcome," she said.

Carrique credited the officers for going above the call of duty to serve and protect Ontarians and the civilians for stepping up to offer help when needed.

"Every day we see people stepping up and meeting challenges they didn't think they would meet," he said.