The group of quick-thinking hikers who rescued two individuals from the Golden Ears Provincial Park using their turbans and jackets, were recognized as Community Leaders by the Ridge Meadows RCMP.
Gagandeep Singh, Gurpreet Singh, Arvindjeet Singh, Kulinder Singh and Ajay Kumar were awarded a certificate and a unique token by the RCMP, for their daring rescue over the Thanksgiving weekend in the provincial park.
On Oct. 11, the RCMP detachment and the Ridge Meadows rescue received a call about two young men in their twenties who were stranded in Lower Falls at the park and were in danger of drowning. Even before the rescue crew arrived, the five young men in their twenties, acted quickly by taking off their turbans and jackets, making a rope out of it, and saved the lives of the two, recognized Supt. Wendy Mehat during an award presentation on Oct. 26.
The five, were first met on the trails by two girls looking for help. They asked the five young men if they had cell network to call 9-1-1 to help the two men. With no cell coverage in the area, the five hurried towards the Lower Falls instead.
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“Your quick thinking undoubtedly saved the lives of these two young men and your actions are a credit to you and the community. On behalf of the Ridge Meadows RCMP Detachment and the community of Maple Ridge and Pitt Meadows, I am truly honoured to present you with our Community Leader Award and detachment challenge coin in recognition of your bravery and honourable actions,” Mehat said.
The Surrey residents were humbled by the RCMP’s honour and recognition, and said they didn’t expect the video to go viral at all.
“We just did what we had to do. We saw someone who needed help and we didn’t think anything of taking the turbans off. We can tie the turbans a 100 times over but we can’t bring a life if lost. So we just did what we had to do,” said Gurpreet, adding that all of their friends and family, both here and in India, are elated over their rescue efforts.
“We still can’t believe all of this is happening. Gagandeep suggested we take our turbans off and tie them together to make the rope and we are so glad we were able to save someone’s life,” said Arvindjeet.
The News first broke the story of the daring rescue and ever since, the group has been interviewed by media nationally, as well as internationally. The group is now slated to meet with Premier John Horgan via Zoom on Oct. 27.
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Gagandeep Singh, Gurpreet Singh, Kulinder Singh, Arvindjeet Singh, Ajay Kumar honoured by the Ridge Meadows RCMP. (Priyanka Ketkar/The News)
