I like RC's suggestion on the Spyderco Rescue (C45). If you stretch your budget a bit there's also the improved version, the Assist (C79), which has a hidden glass breaker (revealed by pressing the finger groove spine blade further into the handle), rescue whistle, and Spyderco's so-called Cobra Hood above the blade hole for easier opening with gloved hands. If you want lower cost while still maintaining high quality you could grab a Spyderco Byrd Cara Cara Rescue for under $25 online. If corrosion resistance and minimal maintenance are important you could always look at the H1 steel versions of the Rescue, the Atlantic Salt (C89) and the Salt Saver (C118)
If you're dead set on a fixed blade the Boker Plus CK-1 Rescue is the fixed blade equivalent of the above folders. If double edged blades are legal in your jurisdiction, and you want a fighting style knife that can be passed off as a rescue knife then the Boker Plus Diver's Knife adaption of their Steelmariner knife may be your best bet.
If it was me, I'd get either the Boker Plus Rescue or the Spyderco Byrd Rescue. Both are inexpensive knives that are still well made, and have true emergency use designs. They cut costs by manufacturing them in China, and using tried and true steels that are no longer the hot new thing. The Boker uses 440c, while the Byrd uses the Chinese version of AUS-8. We think of those as mid level steels now, but they were considered premium not that long ago. Both knives are more than sufficient for the carried often used little contingency role you've specified.