Orders, Decorations, Medals and Militaria

A well documented Canadian Medal for Bravery awarded to Gerry W. White, for his services following the explosion at the Westray Coal Mine, Plymouth, Nova Scotia, 9 May 1992

Canada, Medal for Bravery (G. W. White) silver, in Rideau, Quebec case of issue, nearly extremely fine £850-950

Citation: ‘After a massive explosion inside the Westray Coal Mine at Plymouth, Nova Scotia, on May 9, 1992, nearly 200 men attempted to rescue twenty-six miners trapped underground. For the next five days, rescue teams searched around the clock for survivors. Despite the perilous mixture of highly volatile gases, they repeatedly went underground, beneath a largely unsupported and unstable roof structure. They crawled around twisted pieces of steel that had once been supporting arches, passed machinery that was no longer useful or recognizable, climbed over rockfalls and debris, and waded through brackish water. The teams moved cautiously and silently, fearing that the slightest noise or vibration would cause further rockfalls or explosions. Rescue efforts were finally abandoned after more than a kilometre of the mine had been searched, with no sign of survivors. The rescuers recovered the bodies of fifteen of the twenty-six victims.’

With a quantity of original documents, including: letter of notification of the award; Medal of Bravery award document with citation; ‘Presentation of the Medal of Bravery to the Rescue Teams of the Westray Mine Disaster’ program with citation and list of the near 200 recipients; invitation card for the presentation of the medal by the Rt. Hon. Ramon John Hnatyshyn, Governor General of Canada, 28 November 1994, with an associated letter and a copy of the speech delivered and other papers; a colour photograph of Mr White at the presentation ceremony wearing his medal; a letter of congratulation for the award from the Prime Minister - Jean Chrétien; other letters of congratulations from the Lieutenant Governor of the Province of Nova Scotia; David C. Dingwall, Minister of Supply and Services; Roseanne M. Skoke, M.P. for Central Nova (in plastic folder); Mary Clancy, M.P., Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Citizenship and Immigration; and from Preston Manning, M.P., Leader of the Reform Party; a Christmas Card from the Governor General of Canada and his wife, 1994; Decorations for Bravery booklet; the book The Westray Tragedy, A Miner’s Story, by Shaun Comish; sundry envelopes for the above addressed to Mr Gerry W. White, M.B. of Westville, Nova Scotia. Together with copied research.