North American Rescue

11/14/2025

Nothing but the utmost respect for all of those out there working to save lives in the most difficult situations imaginable!
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The call came in for a traumatic amputation of the foot in the evening. We prepped the OR and got ready.

I was not ready for what happened next.

When the soldier was brought in he looked at me and said instructor! Its you! You were my teacher during training for medicine! I was a bit stunned and had to give my head a shake to refocus, but I said, it’s good to see you alive.

And then he asked, “is it (his leg) gone?” I swallowed the lump in my throat and said yes, but not the whole leg. Lying to him wouldn’t have done any good, but I told him the surgeon would need to remove dead tissue and bone and we would take the best care of him we could. He nodded and laid his head back and we got to work. The anesthesiologist started the pain medications, fluids and started regional nerve blocks and anesthetia.

The surgeon started the amputation surgery. The soldier was losing a lot of blood due to hypothermia issues. We ran in two units of plasma and one unit plasma and kept him as warm as possible on the heated operating table. The surgeon closed up all the vessels and arteries and we bandaged and wrapped the stump.

As he was put on the stretcher and loaded on to the ambulance to go to the hospital, I hoped that he would not need another amputation procedure due to all the dead tissue from the prolonged tourniquet time, that he’d be able to keep his knee. From here on in his life would be completely different. Changed in an instant from the realities of the battlefield.

In the subsequent days we would find out that he was in fact able to keep his knee.

11/14/2025

Be the difference! 🫡💙
On November 7, 2025, Deputy Bullard responded to a call about a newborn baby who was having difficulty breathing. When he arrived, the one-month-old girl was conscious but struggling to catch her breath.

Deputy Bullard carefully turned the baby onto her side to keep her airway open and used a bulb syringe to remove mucus. Thanks to his quick and calm actions, the baby began crying just as paramedics arrived.

The baby was transported to the hospital for an overnight stay and is now back home and doing well. Thank you, Deputy Bullard, for your swift response and for helping save this baby’s life.

11/13/2025

Be the difference 🫡
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On a deployment in 2019, I woke up to a knock on my h***h door around 2am. I was one of 2 medics for this entire FOB and knew immediately this would be a medical situation as it was not the first midnight knock. “Grab your med bag and get to the hut” I hear through the thin wall before I can even get out of bed. 90 seconds later I’m standing with our surgeon getting the brief. “A 15 year old girl was shot in the chest nearly 10 hours North on an anti terrorism raid (not by US forces) and no locals will touch her because she’s a girl. She rode in the back of a truck bed through the night because she heard there might be Americans here who could help her.” When she arrived we immediately went into surgery for a .762 two inches above her heart with a massive exit wound, I have absolutely no clue how she survived. After surgery she woke up and was clearly scared so I did the obvious thing when a child is scared and did my best to distract and comfort her. For the next 2 days I sat next to her playing Disney movies on my laptop and feeding her candy from care packages. While the movies were in English it didn’t seem to matter as she had never seen a movie before and she seemed genuinely happy to be safe and comfortable for a bit. Her favorite candy was watermelon Jolly Rachers and favorite movie was “Cars” by a large margin (watched it 3 times). After a few days when we could pull her chest tube we passed her back to her family and local units as we were not set up for long term care. My platoon leader told me “you sitting with that family for 2 days likely did more “good” for foreign relations than many operations we’ve done. Thank you.”

My time in the military showed me we can be profoundly hard when called to be, but sometimes what’s most beneficial is being softer with each other. There’s no virtue in being incapable of strength, but there is in choosing to temper that in favor of kindness. Give someone a smile and be kind, it will always be worth it to you both.

11/12/2025

Is this the future of MEDEVAC?
from .naganuma /
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Medical Evacuation with Robotic Armored Capsules

A few days ago The 1st Separate Medical Battalion (.army) had successfully deployed a remarkable innovation on the frontlines — a remotely operated evacuation vehicle featuring an armored capsule designed to save lives under fire.
After 33 days in isolation with a tourniquet applied, and six failed evacuation attempts (each costing a lost ground robot), the seventh attempt succeeded.
A wounded soldier was finally extracted from a Russian-controlled settlement using this robotic system — an armored “capsule on wheels” mounted on an ATV-style chassis.

The vehicle covered nearly 40 miles during the mission, 23 miles of which were on a damaged wheel after hitting a landmine, and completed the operation in under six hours. Throughout, aerial drones maintained contact, delivering food and supplies until the extraction route was secured.
During the return leg, the rescue robot came under attack from Russian drones — but the armored capsule protected the wounded soldier, who made it back alive and in stable condition.

The MAUL ground drone, developed by the battalion, runs on an internal combustion engine reaching speeds of up to 70 km/h (43 mph). It’s built with an armored capsule, airless metal wheels, and a rugged design optimized for contested zones. Units are currently produced and sold by DevDroid for around $19,000 each.

Earlier this year we had seen Ukraines 13th Khartia brigade ( a National Gaurd unit ) use a Zmiy-500 ground drone complete a 20 mile mission also evacuating wounded soldiers and dropping supplies.

It makes one wonder if this will be come a new standard in personnel evacuations,
what say you ?

Follow .naganuma to stay updated 🏴

11/12/2025

Incredible teamwork!!! 🫡💪🏼

ROPE RESCUE HAULS MOUNTAIN ACCIDENT VICTIM TO SAFETY

STATE HWY 18 WEST OF BIG BEAR LAKE: led a multi-agency effort involving technical rope rescue to save an accident victim whose car had plunged hundreds of feet over a mountainside this morning.

The response was initiated by the adult female patient, who was injured but had the ability to call 911 for help and just get out of the vehicle. Her exact location was eventually pinpointed, and crews arrived to find her car badly damaged and over 200 feet down a rocky slope near an area referred to as the “Arctic Circle” west of Big Bear Lake.

Initial rescuers hiked down to the patient to begin immediate paramedic-level treatment for what were determined to be moderate to severe injuries. From there, crews set up a rescue system to lower a litter and additional rescuers who would then haul the patient back up. Four rescuers tended a litter as crews above used a mechanical advantage rope system to haul the patient safely to an ambulance. From there the patient was taken to a waiting helicopter, for transport to a regional trauma center.

The California Highway Patrol will now investigate the cause of the accident. State Hwy. 18 in this area is especially winding, although the road itself at this point is reasonably flat and conditions were dry. The car went through a guardrail and over the side.

Crews in this area train for these scenarios. Company 91 from Lake Arrowhead is a designated Technical Rescue house and its members specialize in these skills. County Fire’s robotics unit provided a drone offering real-time visuals to the incident commander from above.

In all, a total of four engine companies, one ground ambulance, one battalion chief, the robotics unit and a training officer responded.

Crews arrived just after 10 a.m., completing the rescue in about an hour and a half, with the patient under paramedic care throughout.

Such incidents require agencies to work together. County Fire thanks cooperators , , Arrowbear Lake Fire, and

11/12/2025

We encourage you to go to and listen to the full episode- if you are a prehospital provider, there isn’t a better source of guidance and resources out there!
🩸 COMPENSATION HIDES THE BLEED—THEN THE CLIFF 🚨
PFC Podcast 254: Mastering Shock Management in Trauma

“Guidelines says ‘give blood at 100 SB.’

But he went 128 → 60.

No Class 3. Straight to Class 4.

Have I been training people wrong?”

Trauma surgeon Max breaks it down:
“Fit patients in Class 2 shock look fine…
Then CRASH—no warning.”

Your NEW Trigger:
✅ Shock Index>0.9
✅ SBP drop >30%
✅ Mental status slipping
= GIVE WHOLE BLOOD NOW

Don’t wait for hypotension.
Compensation fails FAST.

🎯 Train This. Save Lives.

🎙️ Full ep: ProlongedFieldCare.org

📲 Tag your crew. Update your protocols.

#

11/11/2025

To all those who have answered the call, your path of action, and commitment to our country, and to the men and women to your left and right, will always serve as an inspiration for us 🫡🇺🇸 Happy Veterans Day!

11/10/2025

For those of you chasing Whitetail deer and hunting from a treestand, climber, ladder, or saddle - take your safety seriously!!! Wear a safety harness and clip into it before you climb up!!! The number one injury for Whitetail hunters is falling from a tree stand. Additionally, be sure to carry a med kit, so that should an accident occur, you can treat your injuries or those of another hunter!

“Trooper 5 Hoists Injured Hunter in Allegany County

Around 1230pm Saturday, emergency personnel from Allegany County were dispatched for the hunter injured after falling from a tree stand in Greenridge State Forest. Due to the remote location and nature of the injuries, Trooper 5 was requested to hoist and medevac the patient. With ground personnel providing care and assisting, Trooper 5 completed an aerial hoist of the patient into the aircraft and then directly medevac’d them to UPMC Western Maryland for further care. This was a fantastic job by responding personnel to utilize their skills and get this patient to definitive care as quickly as possible.”
Video credit to Flintstone Vol. Fire Department.

11/10/2025

Happy 250th birthday Devil Dogs!

11/05/2025

In the face of so much death and misery it might not seem like much, but every life saved is a major victory in our perspective 🙏🏼

Before we arrived radio call had relayed they thought he was dead. We continued anyway. Soldier was barely alive with no tourniquet applied. It was winter and truly a miracle he was not dead. CAT TQ application , medicine and fluids. Soldier survived. Praise to God 🙏

11/04/2025

Best medicine = Best outcomes!

𝐃𝐨𝐞𝐬 𝐒𝐢𝐳𝐞 𝐌𝐚𝐭𝐭𝐞𝐫? 💉

You’re treating a trauma patient with suspected tension pneumothorax.

You insert a needle for decompression… but are you using the right kind and size of catheter?

A new cadaveric study says your choice could make the difference between success and failure.

Today, we break down�a new study titled "𝐅𝐞𝐧𝐞𝐬𝐭𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐝 𝐂𝐚𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐬 𝐀𝐫𝐞 𝐒𝐮𝐩𝐞𝐫𝐢𝐨𝐫 𝐭𝐨 𝐍𝐨𝐧-𝐅𝐞𝐧𝐞𝐬𝐭𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐝 𝐍𝐞𝐞𝐝𝐥𝐞 𝐓𝐡𝐨𝐫𝐚𝐜𝐨𝐬𝐭𝐨𝐦𝐲 𝐂𝐚𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐬 𝐢𝐧 𝐚 𝐂𝐚𝐝𝐚𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐢𝐜 𝐓𝐞𝐧𝐬𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐏𝐧𝐞𝐮𝐦𝐨𝐭𝐡𝐨𝐫𝐚𝐱 𝐌𝐨𝐝𝐞𝐥" (𝘗𝘳𝘦𝘩𝘰𝘴𝘱𝘪𝘵𝘢𝘭 𝘌𝘮𝘦𝘳𝘨𝘦𝘯𝘤𝘺 𝘊𝘢𝘳𝘦, 𝘈𝘶𝘨 2025)

🔍 What they did:

👉 Researchers tested the following catheters in fresh human cadavers
a. 14 ga fenestrated
b. 14 ga non-fenestrated
c. 10 ga fenestrated
d. 10 ga non-fenestrated

👉 Tension pneumothorax was induced and then relieved using the different catheter types at both the 2nd ICS mid-clavicular and 5th ICS anterior-axillary line.

📊 Key Findings:

1️⃣ Success rate for relieving pressure:
Fenestrated catheters worked 84% of the time vs only 44% for non-fenestrated (p < 0.01).

2️⃣ Time to decompression:
10 ga was faster than 14 ga (21.2 sec vs 36.0 sec, p = 0.01), but fenestration had a bigger impact than gauge size.

3️⃣ Audible air release:
Heard in 88% of fenestrated cases vs 69% with non-fenestrated (p = 0.06).

4️⃣ Insertion site matters:
At the 2nd ICS MCL, fenestrated catheters had a 94% success rate, compared to just 25% with non-fenestrated (p < 0.01).

🚑 Takeaway for EMS:
✔️ If you’re using needle decompression in the field, fenestrated catheters should be your go-to.
✔️ Protocols and equipment should evolve to reflect this superior performance, especially in anterior chest placements.

Kudos to study authors Adam Kruse, Jennifer Achay, Emily Epley, Jeff Swenson, Brian Ferguson, Jeffrey R., Erik DeSoucy, DO, FACS, Shannon Thompson, and David Wampler.

🔗 Read the full study here: https://ow.ly/91kG50XlO7N

10/31/2025

to the rescue ❤️🫡
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🐾 One of the most heartwarming parts of our typhoon response has been rescuing beloved pets — from dogs and a turtle named Fly Girl to Hazel the guinea pig, cherished by two little girls. 💕
A few of our aircrew even welcomed some “Halong pups” into their furever homes! 🐶✨

If you have room in your home (and heart), consider reaching out to one of the local shelters — there are still plenty of furry friends waiting for a second chance. ❤️
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