BRIDGEWATER, NJ - About 50 residents packed the room at the Green Knoll Rescue Squad Feb. 20 for the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s Until Help Arrives training program, presented by University Hospital through a grant given by the New Jersey Department of Health.
The event was coordinated by Bridgewater Township Council Vice President Matthew Moench with Timothy Ring, deputy chief of the Green Knoll Rescue Squad.
The program provided training to residents about using simple and effective skills to save lives; effectively communicating with 911 operators; staying safe while providing help to someone else in an emergency; stopping life-threatening bleeding; managing your body under stress; and moving and positioning and injured person.
“Whether someone is injured because of a fall from a ladder or as part of a mass casualty situation, these easy commonsense steps provide guidance to residents on how to provide emergency aid to someone in a trauma situation, Moench said in a release. “Often times, family, friends or bystanders are the first to arrive to someone’s aide before the police and rescue personnel arrive on the scene. The difference between life and death may depend on average citizens taking action.”
Moench’s “Healthy Bridgewater” initiative will continue to host additional events, including a second Community Narcan training May 8 to provide residents with free Narcan and information on administering it to overdose victims.
There will also be additional events over the next several months for general safety and welfare, and the drug and substance abuse disorder epidemic.