Teen honored for daring river rescue

A 16-year-old Winnipeg boy was honoured Tuesday for his heroic effort in pulling a boy from the freezing Red River in December.

Kole Devisscher has been nominated for the Governor General's award for bravery and was given a certificate of bravery by Manitoba MP Joy Smith.

On the afternoon of Dec. 4, 2010, Devisscher spotted a blue jacket lying on the river and ran down to the water. There, he saw Ralph Chartrand, 10, struggling to get out after falling in.

Devisscher grabbed a tow-rope from his truck and managed to fish the boy out. He said he was aware that he too could fall in due to the thin ice on the river at that point.

"I was just listening for … any cracks or anything just be careful not to get as close as I had to," he said Tuesday.

Sadly, Chartrand's brother, Nathaniel Thorassie, 8, also fell into the river and is presumed drowned.