Heroic RCMP rescue exemplifies bravery, challenges of first responders

Exclusive: Heroic rescue by Richmond Mountie A fast-acting cop's heroic actions were caught on cellphone camera last week. He shared what happened with CTV's Penny Daflos.

When Const. Justin Lee was working traffic duty and heard a call about a woman in distress on the Arthur Laing Bridge, he drove against traffic with lights flashing and sirens blaring to get there as quickly as possible.

Hearing she had jumped, he was the first to arrive at the riverbank.

"By the time I could see the woman in the water she was holding on to a log, so she needed help. And that's just when something kicks in inside you that you have to help somebody who's in distress who's needing help and looking for that help,” Lee told CTV News.

Lee dropped his duty belt and phone, grabbed a life jacket from his cruiser and snagged the life jacket of another Mountie who’d arrived and dove in to the frigid water.

“Close to one or zero degrees -- pretty cold. The type of cold that as soon as you get in the water it kind of seizes your breath and you kind of lose that ability to take that complete breath,” he recalled.

He was fully clothed, wearing his boots and life vest as he scrambled to a woman seen in cell phone video to be clinging to a log as snow fell around her.

"It seemed like I was kicking frantically and I wasn't going anywhere," said Lee.

But he got there within a couple of minutes, saw she wanted rescuing and managed to manoeuver her under the logs, and ultimately to shore. What felt like 90 seconds to Lee actually took nearly 10 minutes. He had the unidentified woman to shore before the Coast Guard arrived.

Hypothermic and on the way to hospital, the nine-year service member called his wife.

“I didn't want [her] to hear from another source, and as soon as I heard her voice on the phone I just lost it,” he said.

“I didn't really expect that. But just hearing the loved one's voice just brought up these emotions that you've suppressed while you're focusing on the task and as soon as I talked to my wife, it all just came out."

The emotional reaction doesn’t surprise BC Professional Firefighters Association President Gord Ditchburn, who says first responders take a heavy mental burden home with them.

“It can be very tough. Our members are expected to act in the community in a very professional manner, dealing with all kinds of life safety issues and then they're expected to go home and be that happy-go-lucky guy, look after his kids and his wife -- and it's a struggle because you've seen and been a part of so much bad things during your day."

Many employers and unions for firefighters, paramedics and police are increasing resources to help their members better manage that burden. Ditchburn says while helping veterans with years’ worth of trauma is a priority, there’s also growing movement to better prepare new recruits for what their new profession entails.

“In a 30-year career -- it's like going up the side of a mountain with a backpack. As you go to these various calls, deal with the issues, you're adding stones to that backpack and at some point your backpack gets either full or it breaks and you've got to deal with the issues.”

There are also many helpful resources for those in the general public who find themselves in crisis. Heretohelp.ca provides mental health and addiction support, while crisiscentrechat.ca connects people to a 24-hour crisis line or online chat with a healthcare professional. Youthinbc.com is specifically geared for young people who need help.

Lee is glad he was there to help a woman when she needed it most, but brushes off the suggestion he’s a hero.

"I think most of my colleagues in my position would do the same thing. It's just what a police officer does, when they put on the uniform and go out on the road."