Volume 2, Issue 1 | Page 17

Hypothermia Brr...so..so..COLD! Hypothermia is when a body’s core temperature drops to the point where normal muscular and cerebral functions are impaired. You may have hypothermia without even realizing it! Be on the lookout for symptoms such as shivering uncontrollably, lost coordination, drowsiness, or a slower breathing or heart rate. If you find yourself in a situation that is too cold for comfort, here are some tips to help keep you or someone else alive long enough for help to arrive. 1. Remove any wet clothes. Being wet is the fastest way to the advanced stages of hypothermia. 2. Build a fire. Good thing you know how if you read above! 3. Consume warm liquids and avoid caffeine and alcohol. If you are in the wilderness pine needles make some great tea! 4. Wrap yourself in a warm blanket, or sleeping bag when possible. If you don’t have anything, pine needles, car seat cushions or interior of sofas are a great way to improvise insolation within the body 5. If you are with someone, get ready to get up close and personal. Hug on to the person(s) you are with and share each other's body heat! 6. Exercise! Do some jumping backs or push-ups to help bring your body temperature up but BE CAREFUL! You don’t want to work up a sweat because wet equals moisture and remember you don’t want to become wet! Sinking Car Flash floods can happen out of nowhere. Even if you follow the “Turn Around Don’t Drown”, you might find yourself in a situation where your car is quickly sinking. Here are some tips to help get you out of that situation. 1. Don’t panic and quickly try to open the doors to escape. You only have a couple seconds to do this so try to make those first couple seconds count. 2. If you were unable to get open the door then quickly roll the window down. It may sound crazy but the idea is to create an escape route as quickly as possible before the car fills with water. 3. Break a window. If you don’t have an object on hand that can break a window, take off the seat headrest and use the metal pieces to break the side windows. Don’t go for the front window because those windows are oftentimes tempered not to break. 17