P. Vincent Coleman was a train dispatcher for the Intercolonial Railway of Canada who was killed in the Halifax explosion. Today he remembered as one of the day's most heroic figures.

On the day of the explosion the 45 year old Coleman was one of two dispatchers controlling the flow of traffic through the harbour. The harbour staff were immediately aware of the danger of the fire aboard the Mont-Blanc, which they knew to be heavy laden with munitions. The office was thus ordered evacuated. Coleman turned back, however, to warn by telegraph two trains heading into Halifax of the danger. His Morse code message was "Munition ships on fire. Making for Pier 6. Goodbye." His warning was heeded and the trains halted, keeping them out of danger. The trains also passed the message on to Boston allowing aid efforts to quickly be mounted. After sending his message Coleman was himself killed in the explosion.

Coleman's sacrifice was the subject of a Heritage Minute, and Coleman was a prominent character in the CBC miniseries Shattered City: The Halifax Explosion. The Heritage Minute and other sources incorrectly describe Coleman as warning others in the town of the explosion. In truth it is believed that he never left the dispatch office before his death. Coleman's telegraph key, watch, and pen are on display at Halifax's Maritime Museum of the Atlantic.

He was survived by his wife Frances who lived until 1970.

External link

• Watch the Heritage Minute about Coleman (http://www.histori.ca/minutes/minute.do?ID=10203)