Four men were awarded the Bavarian Rescue Medal for their courageous intervention during the knife attack in Würzburg. Bavaria’s Prime Minister Markus Söder (CSU) called the honorees a “ray of hope”. You would have prevented there are more victims, he said on Monday in Munich. The medal is given to people who risk their own life in saving others. A man from Düsseldorf also received the Christophorus Medal for providing first aid at the crime scene while the perpetrator was still active.
In the attack in Würzburg on June 25, a man had killed three people with a knife and injured many more. Four of the men now honored had influenced the perpetrator and prevented him from further attacks. A passer-by from Düsseldorf had provided first aid on site, although the 32-year-old was still out with a knife. The experts commissioned in the investigation consider the Somali to be incompetent.
On Monday, Söder honored a total of 24 people with the rescue medal and 30 people with the Christophorus medal for particularly difficult circumstances during the rescue act. They all helped people in life-threatening situations, such as accidents or fires. “A heartfelt thank you and my very personal respect”, Söder concluded his speech.