Archive for October 2008

CPR |Burn's |First Aid |Wounds and Injuries |




First Aid


A poison is a substance that causes injury or illness when it gets into a person's body.The four ways a person can be poisoned are: ingestion (swallowing it), inhalation (breathing it), absorption (absorbing it through the skin), and injection (by having it injected into the body). Ingested poisons include foods, alcohol, medication, household and garden items, and certain plants. Inhaled poisons may be gases, like carbon monoxide from car exhaust, carbon dioxide from sewers, and chlorine from a pool, or fumes from household products like glue, paint, cleaners, or drugs. Absorbed poisons enter the body through the skin; they may come from plants, fertilizers or pesticides. Injected poisons enter the body through bites or stings of insects, spiders, ticks, marine life, snakes, and other animals, or medications injected with a hypodermic needle.

Ingestion

If you suspect that someone has been poisoned, call your Poison Control Center or EMS immediately. Signs of poisoning are: nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, chest or abdominal pain, difficulty breathing, changes in consciousness, seizures, or burns around the lips or tongue or on the skin. If you believe someone may have swallowed a poison, try to determine what type of poison was ingested, how much was taken, and when it was taken. If you find a container, bring it to the telephone with you when you make your emergency call. Do not give the victim anything to eat or drink unless medical professionals tell you to. If you are unsure of what the poison was and the victim vomits, savce some of ti so that the hospital may analyze it and determine what the poison was.

Inhalation

If you suspect that someone has been poisoned, call your Poison Control Center or EMS immediately. Signs of poisoning by inhalation may include pale or bluish skin. Remove the victim from the source of the toxic fumes so he or she can get some fresh air as soon as possible.

Absorption

If you suspect that someone has been poisoned, call your Poison Control Center or EMS immediately. If poison, such as dry or wet chemicals, gets on the skin, flush the area with large amounts of water, and continue flushing the area with water until EMS arrives. If you have simply had a run-in with poison ivy, poison oak or poison sumac, there is no need to call EMS. Wash the affected area with soap and water. If you develop a rash, put a paste of baking soda and water on the area several times a day, or use an anti-itch lotion or an antihistamine to relieve the itchiness. Be aware that some people can have allergic reactions to even over-the-counter drugs to stop itching...use caution and if you have any doubts about whether you are allergic, talk to you doctor! . See a doctor if the condition gets worse, affecting large areas of the body or face.



Injection-Stings and Bites

If someone is stung by an insect, such as a bee,

  • remove the stinger by scraping it away from the skin with your fingernail or a plastic card, or use tweezers.

  • Wash the area with soap and water, cover it to keep it clean, and apply ice to reduce pain and swelling.

  • If the victim begins to have trouble breathing, he or she may be experiencing an allergic reaction and his or her body is going into anaphylactic shock.

  • You must CALL EMS immediately or the victim's airway may constrict, preventing breathing and killing the victim.


Spiders

Only two spiders in the U.S. have bites that can make you seriously ill or kill you. The black widow spider is black with a reddish hourglass shape on the underside of its body. The brown recluse spider is light brown with a darker brown, violin-shaped marking on the top of its body. Both prefer dark, out-of-the-way places, and bites usually occur on the arms or hands of people rummaging in dark garages or attics or in wood piles(In other words, don't go looking for them and they won't bite you!).

Symptoms of spider bites and scorpion stings are:

nausea, vomiting, difficulty breathing or swallowing, sweating and salivating profusely, severe pain in the bite/sting area, a mark indicating a bite/sting, and swelling of the area. If you suspect you have been bitten by a black widow or a brown recluse or stung by a scorpion.

  • Wash the wound,

  • Apply ice to the area, and call EMS immediately.

  • Antivenins, medications that block the effect of the poison, are available.









(at left is a Black Widow and at right is a Brown recluse)









(at left is a bite of a Brown recluse spider and at te right is a bite of a Black widow spider)

Scorpions

Only a few species of scorpions are known to cause death. Scorpions live in dry regions of the southwestern U.S. and Mexico, under rocks, logs and the bark of certain trees. They are most active at night.

If you are stung by a scorpion.

  • You would be wise to call EMS unless you are positive that the one that bit you is not poisonous.









(at left is a Jelly fish and at right is a Scorpion)

Marine Life , Snakes and Other Animals

The stings of some different types of marine life, such as sting rays, sea anemones and jellyfish may make you sick. If you are stung.

  • Soak the affected area in salt water and apply a paste of baking soda or meat tenderizer.

  • Or even ice, as soon as possible to reduce swelling.

  • If you are unsure what stung you, have a history of allergic reactions to marine life stings, are stung on the face or neck, or are having difficulty breathing, call EMS immediately.

If you are bitten by a wild or domestic animal, you may get an infection and you will have injury to the soft tissue. The most serious possible consequence is rabies, which is transmitted through the saliva of diseased animals, including dogs, cats, raccoons, skunks, cattle, and bats. Infected animals may behave strangely; for example, a nocturnal animal like a raccoon may be active during the day, or the animal may drool, appear partially paralyzed, or act irritable, mean, or quiet. Rabies is fatal if it is not treated promptly.

  • If you suspect that you have bitten by a rabid animal, call EMS immediately.

  • Get away from the animal. DO NOT try to catch or hold it.

  • Wash the wound with soap and water if it is minor, control bleeding and apply an antibiotic ointment and a dressing.

  • If the wound is bleeding heavily, do not try to wash it; just try to control the bleeding, and call EMS.

  • Try to remember what the animal looked like, as well as where you last saw it.

  • Call EMS and inform them, and they will get the proper authorities involved.









At left is a (RattleSnake), at center is a(Copperhead) and AT right is a (CottonMouth) snake. This snake are poisonous.

There many different species of snakes. Most are nonpoisonous. The bite of a nonpoisonous snake can cause pain and infection, but is rarely serious. There are three types of poisonous snakes and their bites can cause serious illness and even death. Eastern and Western diamondback rattlesnakes have facial pits, elliptical, rather than round, pupils, and a triangular shaped head that is larger than the neck. (There is a water snake with a triangular shaped head, but no facial pits on the side of its head between its eye and nostril. This is not a poisonous snake!) Diamondback rattlesnake venom is the most potent of the three poisonous species in Oklahoma. The pygmy rattlesnake and other types of rattle snakes .The other two poisonous snakes are the cottonmouth as water moccasin), and the copperhead.


Firs Aid For Non Poisonous Bites

  • Remove all constrictive clothing, shoes, or jewelry from bitten hand or bitten leg.

  • Wash the wound with soap and water.

  • Place a cold pack or ice pack on the wound, 15 minutes on and 15 minutes off.

  • Keep victim calm. Do not give sedative or alcohol.


First Aid For Poisonous Bites

  • Stay calm. Do not waste time trying to capture or kill the snake.

  • Follow general first aid, except DO NOT apply an ice pack or cold pack to the wound.

  • Keep the bite at the level of the heart.

  • DO NOT cut into the wound - this will spread the venom and cause infection.

  • DO NOT suck on the wound with your mouth - this will cause infection and little venom will actually be removed.

  • DO NOT apply a tourniquet or constricting band - this cuts off the blood supply to the wound.


Proceed immediately to the hospital for evaluation and treatment of poisonous snake bite. An antivenin is available, but is reserved for patients with life threatening symptoms.




Image 2 |

Opening of Kiddie Fire Marshal






ACTIVITY


What: Opening showdown for Kiddie Fire Brigade.

When: October 20, 2008.

Where: At the front of Mandaue City Hall.

Time: 8:00 am

Participants: ANS Rescue, Selected students from Labogon National High School

Assisted by: BFP and CEVSAR

A program of: BFP and DepEd



Back |


Daan Bantayan Training














































Video

News Line

SUN STAR

Tuesday, September 17, 2002
Cevsar: volunteers to the rescue
By Leticia Suarez-Orendain
Community Force

For all the flak that the Bureau of Fire Protection (BFP) Region 7 gets, it has shining moments too, and has even given birth to a baby.

BFP Supt. Aderson Comar, as chief of BFP’s Special Rescue Unit, created a civilian, volunteer counterpart of BFD. He founded the Central Visayas Search and Rescue Group (Cevsar), a non-government organization (NGO). It gained Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) approval in 1998.

Recruitment is ongoing, and they train any group in the Central Visayas. To join, one may call 256-0553. For example, they have been to Dumaguete to train students in the various aspects of search and rescue, and thus the NGO is spreading slowy but surely.

Unfortunately, the team cannot be in all emergencies, which is why there are years they may not be very visible.

Cevsar is composed of students, professionals and out-of-school youth who support the BFP during emergencies such as fires. FO1 Romeo Birao said, “When it’s general alarm, they are called to help. Kon first alarm, ang BFP ra.”

Very visible were they in the early hours of Aug. 7, 1999, Cevsar fulfilled its mission: “to save lives and property.” It was their biggest, most dramatic effort so far. But Villa San Pedro Apartment, the unfinished building that claimed 14 lives when it collapsed, has long been stored in our memory.

This year Cevsar was in Santa Catalina, Negros, for the Halad sa Katawhan in honor of President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo’s visit. It was an activity that had to be attended by all government sectors, and the BFP was there, of course. And could Cevsar be far behind?

Then news reached them that there was a flash flood in the mountain area.

Four people were missing out of the 12 that had been affected by the calamity. The team rushed to the area, but what awaited them was tragedy since what was to be a rescue effort became a retrieval operation.

More recently, Cevsar got activated in rescue efforts in the fire that hit Sambag 2 in August. Then there was the Rogelio bus which fell in Tan-awan, Carcar. Their Carcar team, still to be accredited, and other rescue groups helped rescue 60 passengers. Their timely intervention was crucial to loss of lives and property.

Comar could not help mentioning a training drill in 1998 in Cantabaco Coal Cave, Toledo city. A firefighter accidentally fell into a 20-foot drop. The trainees had their baptism of fire on the spot. The firefighter survived.

What guides the team is Comar’s long experience in firefighting, and rescue and retrieval effort. He is the regional action officer of the Disaster Coordinating Council, provincial fire marshal of Siquijor, regional forest fire specialist, and action officer of Patrol 117.

Quick thinking helped the team when they rescued 30 students from Cebu Bible Baptist Church after their bus overshot a curve in Media 11, Lutopan.

Just last year, they got a call too late. The accident happened at 9 a.m. but they were called at 3 p.m. Two miners of a small-scale mine operation went down a 60-foot tunnel. Since water was pooled in the tunnel, they siphoned it out, using a generator. Soon gas filled the place and they became dizzy. One miner got out. When his boss heard that the second miner was still down there, he rushed to the rescue. He never resurfaced.

By the time Cevsar arrived, the two men had been long dead. To avoid getting killed themselves, Comar decided to use an electric fan as an exhaust fan to clear the air so his team could retrieve the bodies.

“Sometimes in rescue effort you have to use whatever material is available,” he said.

Cevsar was also there in 2000 when the MV South-Asia Korea sunk off between Bantayan Island and Iloilo. Comar said that his team was able to use their underwater savvy in the rescue effort.

Among some members are scuba divers, and the rest get training in underwater skills.

They conducted a search and rescue operation with other organizations. For their part, they felt sad that more than 50 lives were lost. And to think the NGO started as a dream.

It was first named the Bureau of Fire Protection/Search and Rescue Auxiliary Group (BFP/Srag) since members were not from the BFP.

The idea sprang after his training in 1994 sponsored by the Japan International Cooperation Agency (Jica). It included tours to places that had good firefighting and rescue units.

“They have a children’s brigade and child rescuers. On my part I observed that we have a lot of courses in the Philippines nga dili magamit. I thought:

what if I build a junior fire or child rescuers unit? In Cebu I saw many students nga vacant ang period. For example, Saturdays and Sundays are used only for outings or adventure.”

In 1997 he was invited to speak at the University of the Visayas (UV) in a rappel exhibition sponsored by the Club Under d’ Sambag Tree Mountaineers, which was nurturing the new Club UV Mountaineers (now the UV Mountaineers).

Comar, then senior inspector, offered to train them in search and rescue. Eventually BFP/Srag was created. In 1998 they decided to change the name, expand its scope and have it SEC registered.

Even today, training is rigid. Among the 20 courses is mountaineering for mountain search and rescue. This helped members respond to crisis. Cevsar joined the Mt. Manunggal Trek in 1998.

“The service vehicle of the local government of Balamban overshot a cliff. Nine people were rescued. Slight ra ang injuries.”

Other courses include urban search and rescue (high angle rescue) from buildings, firefighting, jungle survival, cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR), water rescue and survival, and forest firefighting.

“Our courses are broad, all-weather, from mountain to sea. I got the idea from Japan.”

Since majority of the members, now counting 40, are students, trainings are held on weekends.

Aside from the BFP, the NGO is accredited with: Patrol 117, the Department of Interior and Local Government office, Cebu City Local Government Unit, Talisay City local government, Consolacion and Balamban.




Cebu Daily News / News

http://globalnation.inquirer.net/cebudailynews/news/view_article.php?article_id=104346
Doctor falls to his death
By Nilda Gallo, Marsante G. Alison
Cebu Daily News
Posted date: December 02, 2007
BALAMBAN – He so loved the outdoors he gave up his medical profession to explore caves and mountains full time.
Dr. Adolf “Doc” Espina, an optometrist, met his death in the dark chasm of a cave in barangay Gaas, Balamban town in
west Cebu about 6 p.m. Friday.
Mountain rescuers yesterday carried out the remains of the doctor, who fell to his death in a caving accident.
Espina, a mountain climber and spelunker with over 10 years experience, was pulled out of the cave about 11:40 a.m. after
a 17-hour search and rescue operation.
Five of his companions, including an American, were rescued after they were trapped inside the cave.
The six-man team was on a three-day mapping and exploration of the cave to determine if the cave was the deepest in the
Philippines, said Merks Certifico, one of the cave explorers.
Each team member carried a 400-meter rope and was down to 150 meters in the cave when the accident happened,
Certifico said.
“It was equipment failure,” said Certifico, a Manila-based caver, who recovered the doctor’s locking carabine of the rappel,
harness and rope.
The 36-year-old Espina fell 56 meters down and got stuck on a ledge.
A bachelor, Espina was a former teacher of the Southwestern University (SWU) at the Optometry Department. He
discontinued his practice a few years ago to devote time to his passion for mountain climbing and spelunking.
The other rescued cavers were identified as team leader Dondon Dimpas, Jolina Asis and Khublai Espina, a distant
relative of Adolf Espina.
The six spelunkers went inside the cave shortly before 9 a.m. Friday to measure the depth. It was the second time for the
team to explore the cave after an earlier trip three months ago, when they were limited by their gear and a 150-meter-long
rope.
Certifico, a 33-year-old development worker, said the locking carabine of the rappel rack, which was connected to Espina’s
seat harness, somehow got loosened.
It eventually detached Doc from the common rope.
Certifiko said they would examine Espina’s equipment more closely to determine what happened
Randy Su, former president of the Mountaineering Federation of the Philippines, said the locking carabine can sometimes
loosen if it is constantly rubbed against by a protruding stone.
“They were qualified cavers. Their expertise cannot be questioned. Basically, mountaineering and caving accidents are
caused by failure of equipment 90 percent of the time,” Su said.
Doctor falls to his death - 12/02/07 Page 1 of 2
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The recovery operation was hindered by howling winds, thick fog and rain.
It took about 17 hours to locate and carry out the lifeless body of Espina, who was 5 feet six inches tall and weighed 240
pounds.
The rescue teams were made up of members of the University of San Carlos Mountaineers, Central Visayas Search and
Rescue (Cevsar) and the Cebu City Fire Department. Members of the Philippine Air Force were also there to assist. Radio
communication was provided by the Federation of Cebu Radio Clubs.
The Inter-Mountaineering Society of Cebu, of which Espina was a member, also provided ground support.
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