Last week, Julie Riddle reported on a new program, called Stop the Bleed, that is training Alpena County employees to respond to active shooters and other emergencies by treating injured persons in a way that effectively prevents blood loss.

The program, offered through the MidMichigan Medical Center-Alpena, is, sadly, a much-needed one that should be taught widely in all sorts of settings: schools, churches, government buildings, and more.

Because, while mass-casualty incidents remain very rare, they are becoming more common and more deadly.

In the 50 years before a 1966 massacre at the University of Texas, there were 25 public mass shooting incidents in which four or more people were killed, according to a recent Washington Post report. Since then, there have been 162, with the most deadly occurring only in the last few years (read the full Washington Post report here: http://tinyurl.com/yx9ydb69).

Such incidents can strike anywhere, at any time, and can be committed by any kind of person and can claim any kind of victim.

So it’s good to be prepared, even for the unlikely.

Plus, the skills learned through the program could apply to any kind of emergency in which there are serious injuries, and it’s a good thing for more of us to know how to help our first-responders.

(THE ALPENA NEWS)