6 MAY 2011 NEW ZEALAND GAZETTE, No. 61

sustained by his colleagues with a fire hose and showing others how to do it. When support appliances started to arrive some 11 minutes after the explosion, the officer in charge of the first appliance to arrive was directed to the scene by Senior Firefighter Neil, who was still assisting with operations despite his life-threatening injuries. He finally left the scene by ambulance some 40 minutes after the explosion and subsequently spent 10 weeks in a coma.

Senior Firefighter Neil’s actions between the time of the explosion and his evacuation to hospital were examples of exceptional bravery and professionalism of the highest order and contributed substantially to the safety of members of the public and of his own injured colleagues in the critical period immediately following the explosion.

Michael Ross O’LEARY

Inspector, New Zealand Police

Citation

At 3.55 p.m. on 24 April 2009 Inspector Michael O’Leary was off duty and driving with his family along State Highway One some 17km north of Taupō, when the vehicle in front of him, a Toyota van, crashed head-on with a black sedan coming the opposite way. The Toyota, which contained six people, flipped into the air, landed on its rear, and rolled four times before going off the road and down a grass embankment and bursting into flames.

Inspector O’Leary was the first person to arrive at the scene. Instructing his son, Conor, to wave down any approaching traffic, he went first to the black sedan and determined that the male driver showed no signs of life. Going to the other side, he noticed that the female passenger was semi-conscious and may have sustained a broken leg and other injuries. He told her that help was on the way, but decided not to try and remove her from the car.

Hearing an explosion he looked over to the other side of the road and saw the Toyota in flames. Inspector O’Leary crossed the road but the flames and the angle of the bank prevented him from approaching the Toyota from that side. At this time he was met by Mr Peter Booth, a motorist who had stopped to assist with a small fire extinguisher. After a few words to Mr Booth, Inspector O’Leary ran down the bank and crossed a wire fence to get to the other side of the vehicle. From there he could see two children hanging out to about chest level of what was once a window. As the flames above him were getting stronger, he pulled a two-year-old boy from the Toyota and ran about 15 metres away from the vehicle, where the child was taken by Inspector O’Leary’s daughter back to their car. He then went back to the Toyota to rescue the second child, and was joined by his son, Conor.

By now the Toyota was full of dense black smoke, the flames were becoming fiercer and there were one or two small explosions from inside the vehicle. Inspector O’Leary, Conor O’Leary and Mr Booth attempted to pull the second child, a boy, free but he was held inside by what may have been his seat belt, and the flames beat them back. Determined not to let the child die, Inspector O’Leary asked if anyone had a knife. Fortunately Mr Booth had brought a pocket knife with him when he came to assist. Inspector O’Leary took it and, leaning inside the vehicle, was able to cut away whatever was restraining the child. The three of them were then able to pull the boy, whose trousers were on fire, clear of the vehicle. Inspector O’Leary ripped the burning clothes from the child and took him to a place of safety. By now the Toyota was a ball of fire and further rescues were impossible.

Although he had sustained burns himself, Inspector O’Leary continued to manage the accident scene, especially the care of the injured, until the Police and other emergency services arrived. He was then taken to hospital for treatment.

Despite the horrific scene that confronted him, Inspector O’Leary displayed coolness, professionalism and exceptional bravery in the manner in which he first controlled the accident scene, and then went about attempting to rescue the people trapped inside the burning Toyota. At any time during the rescue attempts the Toyota’s fuel tank could have exploded, killing or seriously injuring him, and those who were with him.

Kevin Lawrence ROONEY

Constable, New Zealand Police

Citation

On 7 May 2009 Constable Kevin Rooney was one to the first Police Officers to arrive at the scene of the fatal shooting of Senior Constable Len Snee, and the wounding of Mr Len Holmwood and Senior Constables Grant Diver and Bruce Miller, by Jan Molenaar in Chaucer Road South, Napier.

Though he was unarmed, Constable Rooney advanced into the immediate scene of the incident with several colleagues and, while under fire from Molenaar, located the position where the wounded Senior Constable Miller was lying. As preparations were being made to move Senior Constable Miller from the scene, Constable Rooney covered part of Senior Constable Miller’s body with his own in order to shield him from further injury. He then assisted in placing Senior Constable Miller into the vehicle, in which he was taken from the scene to a place of safety.

Constable Rooney then evacuated the scene with two other officers, withdrawing up Chaucer Road South to the intersection with Guys Hill Road, where a cordon had been established. A number of shots were fired by the gunman in the direction of the cordon during the evacuation of Senior Constable Diver later that morning.

Constable Rooney played an important role in the events that took place on the morning of 7 May. He displayed exceptional bravery and put his own life in danger during the successful evacuation of Senior Constable Miller from his exposed position near the gunman’s house, while under fire, by protecting Senior Constable Miller’s body with his own and then helping his colleague place the wounded officer in the car.

THE NEW ZEALAND BRAVERY MEDAL (NZBM)

Peter Winston BOOTH

Citation

At 3.55 p.m. on 24 April 2009 Mr Peter Booth was driving north on State Highway One 17km outside of Taupō, when he was overtaken by a vehicle which then crashed head-on with a Toyota van coming in the opposite direction. The van, which contained six people, flipped into the air, landed on its rear and rolled four times, before landing off the road, rolling down a grass embankment and bursting into flames.

Mr Booth stopped his vehicle and, seeing that the engine compartment of the Toyota was on fire, grabbed a small fire extinguisher. He emptied the fire extinguisher onto the blaze but this had little effect because by this time the fire had intensified, some nearby vegetation had been set alight and there were sounds of small explosions coming from inside the burning vehicle.

It was at this time that he saw Inspector Michael O’Leary, who had already saved one child from the burning vehicle, trying to rescue a second child. Without hesitation he went to assist.

As the van filled with dense black smoke, Mr Booth, Inspector O’Leary, and Inspector O’Leary’s son, Conor, tried to pull a boy out of the vehicle, but could not do so. Realising that a seat belt was restraining the child in the car, Inspector O’Leary called for a knife. Fortunately Mr Booth