A Bracebridge man, who drowned after jumping into the Muskoka River to help save another man, has been recognized posthumously with a Carnegie medal for his "extraordinary heroism."
According to the Carnegie Foundation website, Kevin James Schell, 51, was on a nearby bench at Kelvin Grove Park with his adult daughter when a man on a pier in Bracebridge accidentally fell into the water on Aug. 24, 2020.
The man was a poor swimmer and struggled to stay afloat in 30 feet of water, with dangerous, unpredictable currents caused by a waterfall and a man-made dam upriver from the pier, notes the website.
Several onlookers witnessed the man struggling, including Schell, a corrections officer.
A bystander jumped into the water and swam to the man, and attempted to calm him, but he continued to panic. She attempted to calm him once more before she disengaged and exited the water in search of a flotation device.
During that time, Schell and his daughter searched for a life preserver from a nearby life preserver rack, but it could not be found.
Schell told his daughter to call 911 before he ran 60 feet to the end of the pier and entered the water. He swam about 10 feet to the man and was reportedly within an arm’s length of him.
Two more bystanders who also witnessed the incident entered the water immediately after Schell and also swam to the man.
At some point, Schell disappeared beneath the water.
The two bystanders guided the man to a nearby buoy before they placed a life jacket on him and swam him back to the pier where first-responders were waiting. The man had inhaled water, but he recovered.
Divers searched for more than six hours before they located Schell’s body about 30 feet south of where he was last seen. He had drowned.
Schell is one of 17 individuals being recognized by the Carnegie Hero Fund.
“All the men and women recognized today, in acts of extraordinary heroism, risked serious injury or death to save others,” notes the website.
Each individual will receive the Carnegie Medal for Heroism, North America’s "highest honour for civilian heroism."
The Carnegie Medal is given throughout the U.S. and Canada to those who enter extreme danger while saving or attempting to save the lives of others.
To date, the Carnegie Medal has been awarded to 10,422 individuals since the inception of the Pittsburgh-based fund in 1904.
Those in public safety vocations must go beyond their line of duty to be considered. Relevant training or specialized skills on the part of the rescuer are considered against the requirement of extraordinary risk.
Each of the recipients or their survivors will receive a financial grant. Throughout the 120 years since the fund was established by industrialist-philanthropist Andrew Carnegie, $45 million has been given in one time grants, scholarship aid, death benefits, and continuing assistance.
To nominate someone for the Carnegie Medal, complete a nomination form online or write to the Carnegie Hero Fund Commission, 436 Seventh Ave., Suite 1101, Pittsburgh, PA 15219. More information on the Carnegie Medal and the history of the Carnegie Hero Fund Commission can be found at carnegiehero.org.
