Icy waterfall rescue nets man on date a bravery medal, couple now engaged
VICTORIA — A hiking date on Vancouver Island for two friends turned into a life-saving rescue from the edge of a frigid waterfall that earned Janson Chapman a bravery medal and a lifetime partner.
Chapman, a golf course greens keeper from Colwood, was one of 46 people honoured Wednesday with medals of service by Gov. Gen. Julie Payette during a ceremony at British Columbia’s government house.
Twenty-two-year-old Chapman said he was on a date last March with Becca Covey near Gold River when she slipped on ice, fell about 15 metres and ended up clinging from a log at the edge of the Lower Myra Falls.
Chapman said he climbed down a cliff and ventured out onto the icy ledge where he managed to pull his injured friend to safety, after which he carried her on his back for 40 minutes to get her to hospital. He said he remembered throwing his jacket out to her to pull her to safety, but it ripped.