January 20, 2010
With the assistance of our friends in the Canadian Forces, Friday begins the somber and final journey home for two RCMP members who lost their lives in Haiti’s devastating earthquake last week.
Sergeant Mark Gallagher and Superintendent Doug Coates will be honoured by police and military personnel in Port-au-Prince on Friday, January 22, before their remains are placed aboard a Canadian Forces aircraft bound for CFB Trenton in Ontario. Their caskets will be accompanied by RCMP and Canadian Forces staff.
Once arriving on the tarmac in Trenton at approximately 15:00 hrs local time, a private repatriation ceremony with family will pay tribute to the fallen members. Mark and Doug will then be taken by hearse to Toronto, following a stretch of Highway 401 known, fittingly, as the Highway of Heroes.
In the coming days, family, friends and colleagues will pay their respects to Mark in Woodstock, New Brunswick, and to Doug in Ottawa. We will share more information on visitation and funeral arrangements once details are confirmed with family.
As our thoughts remain with Mark and Doug’s loved ones during this painful time, I would like to thank the Canadian Forces for their assistance in repatriating our fallen comrades from Haiti where they were stationed as part of Canada’s contribution to the UN Stabilization Mission there.
I would also like to express my appreciation to the rescue teams in Port-au-Prince who located and recovered our officers and whose courageous efforts continue amid the rubble of the shattered capital.
I am equally grateful to the Canadian police officers and other members of the UN mission who remain on the ground to help provide humanitarian relief and security services.
I thank all those who have offered and provided support to the RCMP and to the families of Sergeant Gallagher and Superintendent Coates throughout this tragedy. Mark and Doug were two fine Mounties who made numerous friends in the course of their careers and throughout their lives. Friday will be a sad day for many.
The kind thoughts already expressed by many Canadians have been a source of comfort to all of us who are shocked and saddened by this unfortunate event. I thank you on behalf of the Gallagher and Coates families and the Royal Canadian Mounted Police.
William J.S. Elliott
Commissioner
