Heroic rescue from fire in Nunavut
Security Guard Chris Acker is part of a team of former law enforcement officers who provide security for Health Centres in Nunavut on a fly-in 28-day rotation with Scarlet Security and Risk Group. Each Enhanced Guard works alone for 12 hours per day for those 28 days.
Officer Acker arrived for his second rotation with the company in Sanikiluaq, Nunavut in October 2023 and went to work that evening as usual on an 1800-0600 shift. At about 3am, while conducting an exterior patrol of the Health Centre, he noticed smoke coming from a building down the road and could hear screaming. He immediately ran to the house and saw that the ground floor was fully engulfed in flames.
There were several people outside the house, who indicated that there was an Inuit elder in an upstairs bedroom. Beaten back by the heat from the fire on the ground level, Officer Acker was able to locate a ladder and climbed to a bedroom window. He smashed the glass and helped the elder out of the window and down the ladder – then realized there was second woman in the house. He took the elder to ground level, passed her to waiting family, and then returned to rescue the second woman.
Officer Acker then moved people away from the building, moved an ATV that was close to the house, and cut the leash of a dog who was tied up next to the building. By this time, the RCMP and fire department had arrived, and Officer Acker returned to the Health Centre to continue with his scheduled shift.
Subsequently, the rescued elder said that she and the other woman had attempted to exit the house via the stairs but were unable to do so because of the fire on the ground level. They had given up and expected to die in the fire.
Nunavut can be an unforgiving place with fewer services than in other parts of Canada that are less remote. Had Officer Acker not taken immediate action, there is no doubt that two people would have died that night.
Thank you, Officer Acker! Your bravery and willingness to immediately go into action to save lives is just one of the reasons you’re our Q3 2023 winner!
Canadian Security Lifesaver Association®