Nepal Disaster
In one of the worst earthquake disasters in almost 8 decades the earthquake at Nepal shook the world. India too experienced a few tremors & also deaths. The worst affected however was Nepal with a death toll of nearing 10,000 & many thousands injured. A natural calamity cannot be avoided however the severity of it could be reduced if there were quality FIRST AIDERS who could have assisted doctors, paramedics & Army personnels. This calamity would not be of such high magnitude in a developed country .Apart from poor disaster management the lack of knowledge of First aid resulted in such high death toll. This should be a lesson for us as such calamities come without intimation. Hence our preparedness by knowing First Aid can reduce loss of life & promote life by preventing further complication.
In cases of Earthquake or any natural calamity where people are buried below debris the most common death occurs due rhabdomyolysis , also known as Crush Syndrome. The crush injury leads to muscle injury & muscle death as direct pressure of debris leads to compression of large blood vessels resulting in loss of blood supply to tissues. This further leads to formation of toxins which if not properly handled can cause death. Extraction of such a victim must be done in the presence of proper medical supervision so that proper medication can be administered & an ambulance to facilitate quick transport of the rescued victims.