On what seemed to be a normal commute from work, an Alabama woman, Laurie Weldon, had a life changing experience. As Laurie was driving, she saw that she was approaching a car accident and decided to stop to see if she could help.An SUV had rear-ended a pickup truck, the airbags had deployed and the driver of the SUV was disoriented and unable to get out of the car.
Saving A Life With Minimal Training
Janelle Vest, the driver of the SUV, was unable to open her car door. Using pen and paper, Laurie was able to signal to Janelle to unlock the door so that she could enter the car to help her.Laurie described the scene, “I opened the door and it wouldn’t open all the way because of the impact to the front end. Janelle was struggling to breathe and I saw that her foot was dangling off her leg. I don’t know enough about medicine to know if her femoral artery was severed.”Thinking that Janelle was bleeding to death, Laurie was quick to act. She took her belt off and tightened it around Janelle’s leg, but it wasn’t enough to stop the bleeding.By this time, another Good Samaritan had stopped and, being instructed by Laurie, grabbed Laurie’s MyMedic MyFAK First Aid Kit from her car. She removed the RATS tourniquet and wrapped Janelle’s leg again.
Waiting For Help While Time Is Running Out
While waiting for help to arrive, Laurie knelt on the busy highway beside Janelle, comforting her and keeping her calm.Laurie planned to stay with Janelle until professional help arrived. The accident took place not even a full mile outside of town, so Laurie assumed that help would arrive quickly. It took 40 minutes for first responders to arrive.When the original call came in to emergency services, it was listed as an “accident without injury.” If Laurie had simply driven past the accident like so many other drivers chose to do that day, Janelle could have died. Because of the severity of the injury and amount of blood loss, it is unlikely that Janelle would have survived the 40-minute wait for help without Laurie and her MyMedic tourniquet.
After The Accident
In the weeks following the accident, Janelle and Laurie have become as close as family and Janelle even refers to Laurie as her “guardian angel.” Laurie visited Janelle nearly every day when she was in the hospital and now visits her at least once a week at her rehabilitation facility.
About MyMedic
In 2010, the founders of MyMedic lost a family member as a result of a car accident. When the accident occurred, another driver immediately stopped to help but didn't have a First Aid Kit or adequate supplies to treat the injuries. It took approximately 30 minutes for the ambulance to arrive and their family member died minutes later.
The MyMedic founders then decided to quit their jobs, move their families close together and start a company that they hoped would make a difference and save lives.Fast-forward to 2018, equipped with a MyMedic First Aid Kit, Laurie was able to perform lifesaving treatment to an automobile accident victim using supplies in the kit.MyMedic’s founding family could not be more pleased to learn about Laurie and Janelle’s harrowing experience and the newfound bond of their families.
Full story here:
https://mymedic.us/blogs/journal/bystander-becomes-a-hero-saves-a-life-with-mymedic-first-aid-kit
The kit used to save Janelle’s life:
https://mymedic.us/collections/first-aid-kits/products/myfak-firstaidkit
