As you might imagine, getting shot by a gun is painful and dangerous, though, if you live in Miami or Los Angeles, not all that uncommon. What can you do for the gun shot victim in the immediate aftermath of the incident? Here are some emergency survival tips for that very scenario.

Medical Attention: Your first order of business should be to get the victim in front of a doctor as soon as possible. Whatever else you might do to stabilize the wound, don’t let the focus shift from finding competent medical care. The faster you do so, the better the chances for survival. However, for various reasons, this might not always be an option.

Secure the Area: If there is still live fire in the area, obviously you want to get the victim as far away from flying bullets as possible, to reduce the chances of being shot again. The only thing worse than one gunshot wound is two…or three…or four. You get the idea. Likewise, if the victim was armed, move the gun out of reach and point it in a safe direction where an accidental discharge won’t strike him again. Remember, bullets can ricochet. At this point, emergency survival depends upon paying attention to the small details.

Immobilize the Victim: Keep the victim still. Lightly support the head and keep it in alignment with the body. This helps to not further aggravate injuries.

Breathing: If the victim is unconscious, check that he is breathing. If not, let’s hope you know CPR because now would be a good time to administer it. Chest wounds can be problematical with CPR. If this is the case, you seriously should be thinking about finding a doctor.

Almost 70% of gunshot victims survive. Head and heart wounds are the most dangerous. Next time we’ll discuss the emergency survival techniques for stopping or slowing bleeding in the absence of a physician.

The Holistic Survival Team

Flickr / RileyOne

Summer heat claims an average of 200 lives each year. We’re going out on a limb to guess that the majority could be prevented through basic emergency survival tactics, but the kind of sweltering weather that can cause exhaustion or stroke is sneaky. During the months of June, July, and August, crippling heat waves can happen almost anywhere. There are the usual geographic suspects of southern California, the desert southwest, Texas, the deep south, and Florida, but recent years have seen the possibility arise in places like Chicago or New York City also.

There are specific steps you can take to prevent heat injuries like sunburn, heat cramps, and the aforementioned heatstroke or heat exhaustion. Here are a few:

1. 10 am to 3 pm is when the sun’s rays are at their peak of destructive power. A word to the wise is avoid exposure during that time frame if you can.

2. If you make a living as a construction worker, this advice might be hard to implement, but reduce physical activity if you can.

3. Wear a wide-brimmed hat and light-colored, lightweight, loose-fitting clothing outdoors. Lighter colors reflect instead of absorb heat, helping your body to avoid overheating.

4. Drink plenty of fluids, 8 to 10 glasses a day recommended, more if you’re exercising or working outside.

5. Use a sunscreen with a protection factor of at least SPF 15 if you’re out in the sun.

The term emergency survival conjures memories of national emergencies and natural disasters. The truth is you can suffer serious medical issues just as easily from simple sunlight. Probably the most serious heat exposure to be aware of is heat stroke, when the body stops sweating but body temperature continues to rise. Learn to recognize symptoms like headache, nausea, vomiting, eye problems, and even unconsciousness. Heat exhaustion is a medical emergency! Call 9-1-1.

The Holistic Survival Team

Flickr / goldberg