✨ Special Honours List
WELLINGTON: FRIDAY, 20 OCTOBER 2006 — ISSUE NO. 119
SPECIAL HONOURS LIST
SPECIAL HONOURS LIST
NEW ZEALAND BRAVERY AWARDS
The Queen has been pleased to approve the following New Zealand Bravery Awards:
THE NEW ZEALAND BRAVERY DECORATION (N.Z.B.D.)
Craig David BENNETT
Constable, New Zealand Police
Citation
On 7 May 2005 at about 7.15 a.m., Constable Bennett was off duty and driving past 36 Cooper Street, in Dunedin, when he noticed that the house was on fire. He was advised by local residents that two children were still in the house and was shown their bedroom window. The room was thick with smoke and he could not see inside. Constable Bennett broke the glass, reached inside and could feel a child’s body. He and a neighbour then broke the glass of a larger window and Constable Bennett put his upper body through the opening and dragged a boy to the window, where he handed him to two neighbours waiting outside.
He then went back into the room, using a ground sheet to cover his mouth and nose, and had to feel his way around inside, as there was no visibility. Hearing a child moan, he moved towards the noise and located a girl wedged between a bed and the wall. He wrapped the child in the ground sheet, carried her to the window and handed her to a neighbour waiting outside. He was then told that the children’s mother was also still inside.
He left the house and went to a rear window and looked into another room full of smoke. Upon smashing the window, moaning could be heard from inside. Constable Bennett reached in and managed to drag a woman to the edge of the room before he was overcome by smoke. Feeling sick and dizzy, and with the woman still inside the room, he returned to his vehicle where he got a mask so he could go inside to rescue her. At this point the Fire Brigade arrived, and Constable Bennett took a fireman to the window. The fireman entered, while Constable Bennett reached in from outside, and together they were able to lift the woman out through the window.
By his exceptional bravery, Constable Bennett was able to effect the rescue of three people from the blazing building.
Ngakina Jane BERTRAND
Sergeant, New Zealand Police
Citation
On 17 and 18 January 2005, there were riots at Yandina in the Solomon Islands during an industrial dispute. At the time of the riots, Sergeant Bertrand was a police constable with the acting rank of Senior Sergeant. On the first day (17 January), a group of protesters attempted to storm the police boat tying up at the wharf. Constable Bertrand led a small number of Royal Solomon Islands police officers to deal with this attack. She and her small group were heavily outnumbered but, despite being assaulted by a number of protesters, she was able to stand her ground and make an arrest while waiting for back-up. After the prisoner had been moved to the police station, the crowd attempted to storm the building to release the man and a two-hour struggle
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Online Sources for this page:
VUW Te Waharoa —
NZ Gazette 2006, No 119
Gazette.govt.nz —
NZ Gazette 2006, No 119
✨ LLM interpretation of page content
🏛️ New Zealand Bravery Awards
🏛️ Governance & Central AdministrationBravery Awards, Police, Rescues, Fire, Riots
- Craig David Bennett (Constable), Awarded New Zealand Bravery Decoration
- Ngakina Jane Bertrand (Sergeant), Awarded New Zealand Bravery Decoration