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Arriving at the scene of a crash to find a car in flames with the driver stuck inside, Jadin Brown and Cameron Whiddon knew what to do – and what they did may have saved a man’s life.
“That’s what we’re supposed to do. We’re mandatory first responders, we have the training, why wouldn’t we help?,” Brown said.
Both are 20 year old students at Royal Military College in Kingston, and have been trained to handle a situation like the one they found last night.
It was just after 10:30 p.m., the two men were outside after having watched the World Juniors on television at Whiddon’s home near Bayview and Moore Avenue, they told CTV News.
“We hear the car speeding by and go, people are being stupid,” Brown said. Soon they heard a crash. “It didn’t sound like it was a normal bang that you would hear every night,” Whiddon said. They followed the sound, and it led them to a parking lot outside.
A black Ford Mustang had lost control while traveling north along Bayview, crashing into cement pillars near the stores loading dock. The car was on fire and a crowd of onlookers was forming. For Brown and Whidden, training kicked in. “We told everyone to move back, we weren’t sure it was going to explode or not,” Whidden said.
Whidden broke all the windows to help clear the smoke from inside, while Brown attended to the driver. “I checked that he was alive, but I couldn’t extricate him because he was pinned,” Brown said. “I tried my best to get him out and get him away from the car that could have exploded and then we just dealt with the fire.”
Flames were erupting from the engine area that the men described as being “about two feet on the engine.”
“It didn’t seem like it was spreading, it just seemed like it was shooting out. But the whole front was just crumpled,” Whiddon said. There had already been calls to 911, and an employee of the Loblaws brought a fire extinguisher, as did a nearby resident. Brown and Whidden went about knocking the fire down. “We put out the fire and checked for vitals. EMS showed up, we gave then the triage report,” Brown said. The car’s roof was removed and it took several minutes to get the man out.
According to Brown and Whidden, the driver was in his mid twenties to early thirties. Police said the man’s condition has been upgraded to non-life threatening.
“Police did tell us that the guy was talking in the ambulance, so I really hope the guy is ok,” Whiddon told CTV News. Both Brown and Whiddon were treated in hospital for smoke inhalation. Whiddon was also treated for a cut to the finger he sustained while breaking the car windows.
When asked about their decision to help, Brown said, “It’s what we’re meant to do, right? It’s serve and protect, service over self. Put yourself in the way of harm for others.” Whiddon added that it’s an easy decision because they can identify with someone in distress.
“I would want someone to come and help me,” Whiddon said. “I think that’s what we did and I think we did an ok job.”

Shared by Jim Thomson Class Secretary 1966:

What struck me most in reading the report was how the Cadets described their actions: “That’s what we’re supposed to do. We’re mandatory first responders, we have the training, why wouldn’t we help?”, Brown said.

When asked about their decision to help, Brown said, “It’s what we’re meant to do, right? It’s serve and protect, service over self. Put yourself in the way of harm for others.”

They clearly understand and live the Military Ethos of “Service” to which they’ve been exposed during their time at RMC.  And I believe this is true of all Graduates of RMC.

As Members of the Class of 1966, we remember the brave actions of one of our Classmates, 6758 Michel Coutu.

Michel put himself “in the way of harm for others”. For his actions, on September 22, 1975, the Governor-General of Canada awarded Michel Canada’s “STAR OF COURAGE” medal.

“Capt. Michel Coutu jumped from the Perley Bridge in Hawkesbury, Ontario, into the Ottawa River fifty feet below in an attempt to save the life of a seventeen-year-old motorcyclist. On May 27, 1973, when his motorcycle struck the rear of a car, the youth’s clothes became saturated with gasoline and caught fire. Overcome with pain, the victim hurled himself over the handrail and dropped into the river.

Recognizing the youth’s desperate plight, Capt. Coutu, in complete disregard for his own safety, leaped from the bridge into the fast-moving water. The would-be rescuer swam downstream after the victim, but the latter had already disappeared below the surface and was drowned. Presently, a boatman came to the assistance of Capt. Coutu who was brought safely to shore.”

These actions by Michel, Jadin and Cameraon happened fifty-two years apart. They show that the Military Ethos of RMC Graduates remains strong, clear, and constant over decades.  This is not only one of the most important foundations of officer development at RMC, it is absent from the environment of other Canadian civilian universities and colleges. In today’s uncertain and dangerous world, Canada needs her Canadian Military Colleges – and our Graduates – more than ever.

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