Canadian war-hero and last living winner of the Victoria Cross, Ernest Alvia (Smoky) Smith has died at his Vancouver home. He was 91.

Smith was born in New Westminster, B.C., just weeks before the onset of the First World War, but it is for his brave actions during WWII for which he is known. Smith had already been wounded once in Sicily, when he returned to cross the Savio River with his regiment, the Seaforth Highlanders, the spearhead of an attack aimed at establishing a bridgehead in the push to liberate Cesena and ultimately break through the Germans' Gothic Line. It was the night of October 21 -22, 1944 and it had been raining so heavily that the river had risen two metres in five hours. The banks had become too soft for their tanks or anti-tank guns to get across in order to support the rifle companies. It was at this point that were faced with a German counterattack of three Panther tanks, two self-propelled guns and approximately 30 infantrymen.

Smith was armed with two machine guns, an anti-tank gun and hundreds of rounds of machine-gun ammunition strung around his neck and hanging off his body. He led his three-man anti-tank group across an open field under heavy fire. He left an anti-tank weapon with one of his men while he led Pte. Jimmy Tennant across the road for another. The Germans threw grenades at them and Tennant took a hit in the shoulder. Smith and Tennant took cover in a ditch only to have a Panzer come towards them, firing as it approached. Smith later described taking out the attacking tank with a shoulder-fired PIAT, an anti-tank gun that was extremely powerful, but known be being inaccurate. Not trusting the anti-tank gun, Smith waited until the 45-tonne Panzer was only 10 yards away from him before he jumped out from his cover, laid down and fired back. He took out the tank and then used his Tommy gun to kill the first four infantrymen who were charging toward them. Smith held their ground, constantly firing at the enemy until they retreated. Smith then helped his badly bleeding friend, Tennant back across the road to a church, leaving the injured man in the care of medics. Smith was only 30 years old at the time.

Smith heard he'd won the Victoria Cross - the Commonwealth's highest, decoration for heroism - about seven weeks later. The situation appeared hopeless said Smith's citation. He was the only Canadian private to win the medal in the Second World War.

Last fall, Italians and Canadians gathered beneath in Cesena, Italy, to honour Smith for his unwavering act of bravery that that saved untold lives and changed his own forever. In a ceremony filled with tales, tears and tributes, officials unveiled a plaque commemorating the night of Oct. 21-22, 1944. His actions that rainy night, were hailed as an inspiration to all his countrymen for time immemorial.

Prime Minister Paul Martin thanked Smith's family on behalf of "a grateful and indebted nation," and said he was "deeply saddened by the passing of a true Canadian hero. We are a better nation because of men like Sgt. Smoky Smith."