A small but mighty kit saving lives in critical moments
After an IMPD officer was shot at least three times in the line of duty on the West side on Tuesday
By Amber Grigley
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INDIANAPOLIS (WRTV) — After an IMPD officer was shot at least three times in the line of duty on the West side on Tuesday, July 29, he began to address his wounds. He applied a tourniquet from a trauma kit before he was helped and taken to the hospital.
WRTV spoke with Rick Snyder, the President of the Indianapolis Fraternal Order of Police, about those kits, which he said are becoming more accessible for officers thanks to the community.
“Here in Indianapolis, every single police officer has one of these kits, and they’re all trained on how to use them,” Snyder said.
A small but mighty kit is saving lives in critical moments.
“Over 200 lives have been saved by the use of these kits, and the vital thing is that the majority of those 200 saved have been civilians, not even our officers,” Snyder said.
Snyder said that since rolling out these kits, they have been able to expand their availability to officers in surrounding counties outside Marion County.
“We now have over 3,000 of these kits in circulation in Central Indiana. We have also moved them into southern Indiana. We have a total of about 5,000 kits distributed throughout the state,” Snyder said.
The emergency trauma kits contain medical shears, gloves, bandages, a pressure cuff, and a combat tourniquet. On average, each kit costs $125. The Central Indiana Police Foundation collects grant money and raises funds for these kits.
“There was an older lady who didn’t have a lot, but she donated $5 every month until she could buy a kit. It’s things like that that remind our officers of the people behind the blinds who care about them,” Snyder said.
Volunteers also help assemble the kits.
“Anyone who has ever assembled a kit thinks to themselves, when they see it on the news, ‘I wonder if that was my kit.’ It establishes this wonderful relationship between the community and the police, showing the power of collaboration. When our police officers and community work together, there’s nothing we can’t accomplish,” Snyder said.
Snyder shared that the idea began on July 10, 2008, after IMPD Officer Jason Fishburne was shot in the line of duty. At that time, officers did not have trauma kits, but one officer, who was a former combat medic, had his own kit and ultimately helped save Fishburne’s life. Since then, Snyder has made it his mission to ensure every officer carries a kit with them.
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