President Stubb Awards Lifesaving Medals to Six Citizens for Heroic Acts
President Alexander Stubb has awarded the Lifesaving Medal to six individuals in recognition of their courageous and life-saving actions. The medal is granted for acts of extreme bravery, resourcefulness, or self-sacrifice in rescuing others from imminent danger.
Fire Rescue in Imatra
Matti Ovaskainen, 78, from Imatra, received the medal for saving his unconscious friend from a burning car in August 2025. Ovaskainen was leaving a gym at the Stora Enso Imatra mill when he noticed his friend’s car engulfed in flames in the parking lot. The friend had suffered a medical episode, lost consciousness, and the vehicle had crashed into a metal waste container, igniting a fire.
Ovaskainen acted quickly, using a pocketknife to cut the seatbelt and pull his friend from the burning car. He then performed resuscitation, reviving the man after 2–3 minutes. Ilta-Sanomat (IS) reports that Ovaskainen later reflected on his calmness during the incident, saying, "I would have assumed I would have frozen completely, but I was actually quite calm the whole time." The rescued friend spent nearly a week in hospital but recovered fully.
Water Rescues Across Finland
The remaining five recipients were honored for their roles in water rescues:
- Marko Karppinen saved two young men from drowning in Oulu’s Oulujoki River in July 2025. The men had been swept toward the open dam gates of the Merikoski power plant, with one repeatedly going underwater. Karppinen swam out with a life ring and pulled them to safety just meters from the dangerous current (IS).
- Juuso Juuri and Vili Hyötyläinen assisted in a jet ski accident in Valkeakoski’s canal in July 2025, helping individuals who had fallen into the water (IS).
- Jari Lampela from Rovaniemi rescued a mother and child from the Kemijoki River after their car drifted into the water in Tervola. Lampela, who had completed swimming instructor training decades earlier, swam through strong currents to bring the victims to shore. Yle reports that the mother was pregnant at the time, meaning Lampela’s actions saved three lives. The child, now attending swimming lessons, shows no fear of water. Lampela humorously noted, "We were the better reapers," referring to the mother’s moment of despair before the rescue.
The recipients expressed gratitude for the recognition, with Lampela emphasizing the importance of swimming skills. "This proved how important it is to master swimming skills," he told Yle. Ovaskainen, meanwhile, described the medal as "warming the heart," adding that his friend has since treated him to meals in gratitude.