Well here we are again in the face of another violent tragedy. In the past few violent attacks the world has experienced it’s been with the use of firearms and/or explosive devices. These types of events can cause political knee jerk reactions, saying that the firearms are the reason for the violence, instead of going after the root cause; the person behind the gun.
“A gunman turned a Las Vegas concert into a killing field Sunday night from his perch on the 32nd floor of the Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino, using at least 10 guns to rain down a steady stream of fire, murdering at least 58 people and injuring more than 500 others in the deadliest mass shooting in modern United States history.” – Fox News
We have covered several articles here in the Loadout Room on using common everyday items as weapons for personal defense, not violence. As part of our preparedness and situational awareness we need to be able to be able to recognize this. These type of attacks are not able to be stopped ahead of time when improvising with the delivery method of the violence. This type of thing would need to be dealt with in the heat of the moment.
How do we prepare for such a thing? Well for starters you can start to train yourself to be able to recognize common everyday items for use in your own personal defense if you are without an actual weapon of any sort. By doing this, you will train your mind to recognize this stuff. You may be able to put a stop to an attack someday by employing these methods against the bad guy. Be ready to react with what you have on your person. Most of us have items we carry on us everyday (EDC). Know how to use those items and be prepared to react if necessary.
The other extremely important thing you can do is be prepared to react to the medical trauma inflicted. Have a medical kit in your bag ready to go. At a minimum carry a tourniquet on your person. Be able to improvise a tourniquet and provide stop gaps until you get a tourniquet applied. Get medical training! You are more likely to use medical skills on a daily basis than your shooting skills. Bare minimum get Red Cross First Aid and CPR training.
When seconds count, first responders are minutes away.
Photo courtesy of Fox News