Arcata resident Brian K. Smith was named as one of 26 individuals from the United States and Canada Wednesday as a recipient of the Carnegie Medal, according to a Carnegie Hero Fund Commission news release.

Smith died helping to save his nephew Asa G. Segura Smith from drowning in the South Fork of the Trinity River in Salyer, Calif. on July 22, 2006, according to the release.

The medal is awarded to those who risk their lives to an extraordinary degree while saving or attempting to save the lives of others, the release stated.

Seven awardees lost their lives in the performance of their rescue acts, the release stated.