Three awarded for bravery during Prairie Mall shooting
Grand Prarie AB Canada January 4 2019
Grande Prairie Crime Prevention presented three individuals with awards for acts of bravery during the 2016 Prairie Mall shooting on Dec. 19.
A single shot was fired at the Prairie Mall after a fight broke out between two groups of people in the food court on Sept. 15, 2016. Three bystanders were injured from the shot. The shooter fled the scene, while the mall was evacuated and put on lockdown.
“Countless people were in life-threatening danger, including many children, but thanks to the quick actions from a variety of individuals, no lives were lost that day,” said the Crime Prevention organization in a statement. “Crime Prevention wishes to recognize and thank a few of these individuals who were nominated by a member of our community.”
The community member was at the mall during the time of the shooting and wished to remain anonymous. They also waited until court proceedings related to this incident were concluded before making the nominations, Crime Prevention stated.
Anneliese Reckewitz, an award recipient, was teaching self-defence at the mall during the incident. When the shot was fired, she protected several young girls at the BeYou Campaign in the food court by having them crouch down and get behind cover.
“When it was safe, she then escorted these girls out into the parking lot in a reassuring manner,” Crime Prevention stated. “Through these actions in such a chaotic situation, she placed the lives of others ahead of her own without hesitation.”
Chris Sibley, another recipient, was part of Prairie Mall Security during the shooting and attended to a man who was shot in the leg. According to Crime Prevention, the bullet had severed the man’s femoral artery.
“Using his own tie at a tourniquet, and his hand to apply pressure internally, Chris stopped the bleeding in time for paramedics to attend and transport the man to hospital,” Crime Prevention stated. “Chris’s direct actions saved that man’s life.”
The Prairie Mall Security team also received an award with Lucas Stauffer accepting. Stauffer had been working security the day of the shooting.
“Lucas triaged those injured and attended to the severely injured individual as well, contributing life-saving actions,” Crime Prevention stated. “He was the one to call 911 and provide crucial details that allowed first responders to attend quickly and safely.”
The Crime Prevention Award recognizes businesses, individuals, schools, community groups and others whose have helped make the community safer and connected.
“Even though the actions of these individuals at the Prairie Mall shooting don’t fall under any of the set categories as listed in the nomination form, these awards were given out for bravery,” Crime Prevention stated.
