Posted by KannibalKandy Hey all! So I was wondering, has anyone gotten a serious enough injury enough to send them to the ER or need a first aid kit while exploring? If not do ya'll have a personal first aid kit you have created to take with you on explorations? I'm thinking of making one for myself and was curious what others might have to say or any advice you might have. Thank you for the help!
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Glad to hear your asking these questions!! Way to be ! That’s what will keep you exploring years to come. Funny thing about first aid kits. I am the medic in any outdoor indoor exploration amongst various groups. Always have been my first aid kit Varys from aaa bats a lighter some rope and my surgical kit. Yes my surgical kit. That one was bought after my buddy pushed a 500+ pound piece of part brick part rebar part radiator part possible armored truck down a hill underground in hopes it would open up the location we desired. I used real sewing needle thread and glue to stitch him up. Later at the va the dr said that whomever stitched him is was not only Resourceful but very skilled. They thought it was done by a surgeon. Lol! Most important things are going to be - think of the worst emergency situation and get what you need. Hot hands help prevent hypothermia.
No joke. Last winter -40 degrees not windchill down to my newest exploration area after studying endlessly for months and mapping and scoping. This was a big one - even rented a high rise for the occasion. Well I thought for whatever reason that it was going to be ok to go from -40 to + 60 with warm gooey fluids up to our belly buttons wouldn’t be a big deal. I was so goddamn excited to see that little whole I could crawl through like Charlie in the chocolate factory or Alice in wonderland- only I knew what was beyond that dark precarious whole innthe way the f above I don’t even know how I’m going to get up there but there it was and I thought it would be in I went and immediately dropped to my belly button in god knows what fluid. Already sweating and shedding layers the warm water wasn’t too bad after getting out and up the wall and around the metal rusted shaft up the concrete shaft and into the hole I thought I would be fine. Didn’t occur to me that I wasn’t drying I was so busy excited seeing if everything was as I thought. Well it was getting up there in underground hours and hungry out of water and weak and sleep deprived we reluctantly made a much slower descent out of there but when I crawled out of that hole it was no joke I mean it was instantaneous freezing all below my waist.
I knew I had to move quickly to get to the car. It was unfortunate that it was parked 6 flights of dargerous stairs and 1/2 block away.
I remember thinking about the sound freezing skin made or maybe it was the sound of the frozen skin breaking every lifted step. My hands were useless I couldn’t remove my coat which at this point was 1/2 froze solid. But my legs .. that’s what got me- no matter how I tried to tell myself “ it’s just ice” I can break ice, the steps got slower and harder and I got tired and my mind wasn’t really there it was like watching bits of a movie.
My buddies voice and my last thoughts of the moment are all I remember. I couldn’t move any more I just couldn’t and I’m a determined strong human. But I was literally frozen in place. My legs froze to my tights to my under armor to my sweats to my jeans to my half down snow pants.
My buddy screaming to me seemed so far away “ take off your clothes now hurry you have to take everything off or you won’t make it”
I recall thinking this along the way up I was moving so quickly that I thought I’d make it. My hands badly frost bitten I got my snow pants unbuttoned but that was all I could manage as I slowed down.
My last thoughts were “ huh, so I guess humans can freeze in place..” and next thing I know I feel like I’m dreaming and feel like I’m being put in a car seat like a child experiencing the bits and pieces of what I can catch glimps of out the window.
It’s hours later and I’m chewing something really friggen good. Scallops from my favorite restaurant remain unnamed. Can you speak to me I hear my buddy say. I replied with some mumbling version of feed me. Hot coffee and delicious hot food fed to me. I was practically in the drivers seat with my buddy - he was holding me like a baby feeding me- my hot hands wrappers were everywhere the first aid kit had 10 and they were stuffed in places I wondered how I’d feel about had this not been the circumstances. My clothing was in the backseat which apparently we had been in the hot car for over 3 hours and my clothes were stood up froze solid in the back seat with a single line cut from the hip of my pants to the bottom of the ridiculous over sized bells on the bottom of my jeans. Favorite snow pants cut in half twice sock soaked for what’ reason we’re not solid like the pants and my buddy’s jacket and shirt. His lips were blue. He took care of me before himself after eating I passed out. He stayed awake for me and as I came to he was in bad shape too. I didn’t realize he didn’t take his underclothes off and was soaked to the bone. I dried him up with my extra clothes and helped him into his dry clothes got another coffee and kept him awake. We got to the high rise loft ate a bit more and fell safely asleep on top of one another ( for warmth 😉) when I woke up he was ok too he sat and told me that he stripped off most of his clothes in a full on sprint to get to me. This was true we went back to get them and it was unbelievable how heavy each layer was. And how long they took to thaw. My pants still in stair crouch position in the back seat frozen I’m pretty sure they stayed this way till spring lol, he told me that he went into this super nice restaurant in his under gear tights and under armor shirt he put his wet boots back on said they weighed a ton. This was also true as I woke up wearing one of the dry sets of his clothes and the only other set he had was what I helped him into. The hot hands were supposedly put down my shirt without him looking but none the matter for saving my life he was the object of my desire which he later found out. He said the hot hands coming away from my hands were ice cold he’d take them away and shake them until they warmed. I ask how he kept my hands warm and he blushed saying well you know it’s not like I enjoyed it I was already cold and you were rapidly about to become mr. Freezys frozen fantasy if I didn’t act quick.
My first aid kit contained and always has
Hot hands
Condoms ( don’t laugh I’m serious that shit saves more than lives)
I’ve pack
Water tablets
Turnicate
Aaa batteries
As batteries
Walkie talkie
Gorilla glue( can be used on wounds)
Electric tape
Emergency flair and glow sticks
Extra head lamp
Quick clot( that stuff is nasty but it’s effective and when needed it’s a blessing)
Nasal breathing tube
Altoids
Ibuprofen and an old oxycodine from my old rx long long ago ( Just Incase someone is hurt so bad the only option is pain relief to get them lifted carried out of there)
Bandaids
Steri strips ( make friends with steri strips they are a life saver)
Various medical tapes
Alcohol swabs and pads
My old needle and thread sewing kit
Epinephrine pen
And I’m sure there’s more I just can’t think of at the moment but most important stuff I listed