The quick arrival of police, equipped with and trained in the use of tourniquets and pressure bandages, helped save a Ladner man’s life recently.
Last Friday, Dec. 14 around 10:30 p.m., Delta police responded to a 911 call in the 4700 block of 45th Ave. in Ladner, about a broken window, and that someone was potentially hurt.
“Our officers arrived on scene within six minutes, to find a man lying on his front steps, bleeding profusely,” said Chief Neil Dubord. “At that point the situation was dire, as the man was already grey in colour, with his breathing shallow and labored.”
Sgt. Sarah Swallow and Const. Brad Mear observed several lacerations to the man’s arm, which were vigorously bleeding. Recognizing the life-threatening nature of the situation officers requested paramedics to arrive at haste, and began immediately treating him.
Mear successfully applied his tourniquet to the victim’s right arm, which stopped the bleeding. However, the man’s vital signs continued to be unstable.
Meanwhile another officer arrived on scene and applied an Israeli bandage to the wound for secondary pressure and protection, as the wound was very severe. Officers moved the man into the entryway of the home to keep him warm, and Swallow kept talking to him while monitoring his vital signs.
Paramedics arrived shortly thereafter and transported the man to hospital, where he was immediately admitted for surgery. The doctor who treated the man confirmed that his injury was life threatening, and praised the quick and effective police emergency first aid for saving the man’s life.
“I’m very proud of the efforts of our officers. We do a lot of training here, because our officers need to be prepared to deal with a wide range of issues,” added Dubord. “I’m so pleased that preparation has paid off, resulting in a man’s life being saved.”
Delta police officers on the former Municipal Emergency Response Team first began using tourniquets in 2008. They then encouraged introduction of this first aid tool to patrol members in 2010, which was also the first time it was used by the department to help save a life. Since 2012 all front line police officers in Delta have been issued tourniquets and are trained in their use.
The injured man has since been released from hospital.
