First Responders Are Revealing “Fatal” Safety Mistakes People Make All The Time (And What To Do Instead)

A while back, we wrote a post where first responders revealed the everyday safety tips that more people should know. In the comments, more first responders revealed their advice as well as the common safety mistakes people make, and honestly, it could save your life. Here’s what they had to say:

Note: Some submissions were pulled from this Reddit thread by u/PeachMilkshake2319.

1.“Saving yourself and not your stuff is 100% true in any emergent situation. Fire? Get out. Tornado or hurricane? Get to shelter. Flooding? Get to high ground. Your stuff is replaceable, or if it’s not, it’s still not as valuable as your life.”

“Yes, I know some people do not have the ‘luxury’ of going elsewhere in a hurricane, flood, or wildfire situation, but for most people, just go. Now.”

—wanderingstorm

2.“If you slide off the road or spin out due to icy or wet conditions, stay in your car. Other cars will likely experience the same conditions and slam into your vehicle or you if you’re outside the car. I responded to one such incident and the resulting fatality, and witnessed a state trooper who was nearly hit in another.”

—Anonymous, 72, Minnesota

3.“If you hit your head in an accident, go to the hospital. Just get it checked out, just in case, even if you feel fine.”

—jillsanders

Related: “I Know She Was Genuinely Trying To Be Nice, But It Was Such A Hard Thing To Hear:” People Are Revealing The Most Repulsive Remarks They Received That Were Meant To Be “Helpful”

4.“If you’re choking on something and coughing, lean forward over your knees with your head down. Let gravity help clear the blockage, rather than trying to fight it.”

—Catfishers

5.“Have your address clearly marked and lit so responders can get to you quickly…every second counts.”

—Ten7850

6.“If you are dealing with someone who has been stabbed or impaled and the item is still inside the body, do not pull it out.”

—justneedadvice87

7.“A friend of mine is a police officer in his home city. If your friend is drunk, get them a cab home. DO NOT leave them to take the train home. He always tells me that 90% of the people who get run over by trains are drunk and fall into the train tracks.”

—Cool_loser69

8.“I have a friend who is a first responder. He says, ‘STAY OFF TRAIN TRACKS.’ Don’t squish pennies or do photo shoots on them or walk on them at all. Believe it or not, trains can sneak up on you at an alarming speed, and they DO NOT slow down.”

—cuteemogirlfriend

Related: “I Can’t Wait For This To Go Out Of Style”: People Are Sharing Popular Modern Trends That Are Actually Pretty Toxic

9.“One thing a senior supervisor taught me as a crisis social worker: If it feels bad or wrong, trust it. Don’t push past it; there’s usually a good reason you intuitively know that.”

“Also, lock up your damn guns.”

—sbpurcell

10.“Limb amputations. It’s easy to save someone with a tourniquet. Keep a few in your car, and know how to apply them. It can save your or someone else’s life. Tons and tons of blood dump out of an amputation.”

—tibearius1123

11.“Learn how to save a child who is choking. Every parent should assume at some point their child WILL choke on something and know how to handle such a situation.”

—Brief-Advantage-9907

12.“My wife was a trauma nurse (now PACU), and we’ve found ourselves in some not ideal situations in our travels. Take an AED/CPR/First Aid class — bonus points for Stop The Bleed (it’s often free!). That will prep you for the majority of stuff you’ll encounter. Have a good first aid kit at home and in your car.”

—hipsterasshipster

13.“If you see a snake, just keep a distance and stay calm. Most snakes won’t attack you; probably only anacondas think of you as food, unless you’re a little kid who meets a big python. Don’t try to pick a snake up!!! If you get bitten, take a good look at what kind of snake it is. Try to stay calm, and get medical help ASAP.”

—Yugan-Dali

Related: My Doctor Forced Me To Do Something Disturbing. It Kept Me From Seeking Further Medical Care For Years.

14.“If you ever encounter a heavily burnt person running to you (They always run in the hope to survive), don’t touch them with your bare hands, your hands might be too hard for their burnt skin and flesh, always touch them with a cloth or a towel.”

—curator_boy

15.“If you lose your child in a crowded area, shout out what they’re wearing as well as their name. It makes them much easier to identify to others.”

—merrywidow14

16.“If you’re in a car accident, especially at a busy intersection/roadway, don’t just get out; if your car is driveable, get it out of the roadway. If it’s not drivable, get yourself out of the street ASAP. Can’t count how many times I’ve almost been struck by drivers not paying attention or just driving fast past accident scenes.”

—Edburly22

17.“If you’re swimming in the ocean, and you get knocked over and can’t tell which way is up, exhale and follow the bubbles.”

—merrywidow14

18.“Whenever you encounter an emergency situation, stop what you’re doing and say to yourself, ‘This is not MY emergency.’ This will (hopefully) allow you to take a step back, assess the situation, and prevent you from making poor, split-second decisions. So many people jump into swift water trying to save someone else, only to become a second victim. Some people quickly try to extricate victims, but injure them further.”

“Allow yourself to look at things as objectively as possible, and you’ll make much better decisions.”

—classless_classic

19.“If everyone in a room/vehicle/building is unresponsive, DO NOT ENTER FOR ANY REASON. If you see someone collapse after entering a confined space, DO NOT ENTER FOR ANY REASON. If you see someone collapsed near a potential chemical spill, DO NOT ENTER FOR ANY REASON. Overall, if it killed them, it will kill you.”

—garfieldlover3000

20.“Career Coast Guard here: Wear your life jacket. Period. Don’t drink and drive a boat. Period. Use the kill switch on your boat/PWC. Know where you’re going, and tell two people your itinerary. Make sure a second person on the vessel knows how to operate it. Practice man overboard drills/situations.”

“The backfire flame arrester on your engine is your friend; do not remove it. I promise you it doesn’t ‘gain you any horsepower’ when you remove it. Also, keep a life ring/throwable within arm’s reach.”

—h1jynx

Related: People Are Sharing The One Thing They Stopped Doing That Instantly Made Their Lives A Million Times Better, And I’m About To Try Them

21.“If you ever fall through ice, you only have minutes to get on the shelf. Once you’re on the shelf, roll away from it towards stronger ice — don’t try to stand up and walk.”

—h1jynx

22.“You don’t have to have phone service to dial an emergency number. It will be prioritised for any available network, so if there’s a signal from anything, it will get through, not just your network.”

“Similarly, if you don’t know the emergency number of a country you’re in, try the one for your home country. A lot of places will have common ones worldwide that go through, too.”

—BBQMcAwesomesauce

And finally…

23.“Paramedic here: 1) Learn to recognize signs and symptoms of a stroke. The ‘F.A.S.T’ acronym is what we use in the EMS world. 2) Learn how to do effective CPR. Immediate bystander CPR and early 911 activation play a MAJOR role in good patient outcomes in cardiac arrest.”

“If you don’t do good CPR, there won’t be very much brain/heart to save by the time we get there.”

—Rayshmith

Note: Some responses have been edited for length and/or clarity.

Fellow first responders, what are some “emergency” safety tips people should know that could save their lives? Tell us in the comments, or if you prefer to remain anonymous, you can use the form below.

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