Partnership will provide Central Ohio first responders with safety kits

A partnership between the emergency management directors of 14 counties, the Franklin County Emergency Management and Homeland Security, and citizenAID will provide nearly 1,000 Public Safety Drop Kits to first responders throughout Central Ohio.

The kits, made by Columbus-based citizenAID, include items such as nitrile gloves, gauze, pressure dressings, tourniquets, and emergency blankets. They also include step-by-step instructions.

The kits are packaged in small, transportable bags and will be placed in fire and EMS vehicles, police cruisers, and with special event units working large-crowd public events. They are designed for first responders to distribute during an emergency, allowing civilians to help treat the wounded.

“With these citizenAID Public Safety Drop Kits, we now have the ability to enable the uninjured to help save lives before EMS arrives,” Jeffrey J. Young, Franklin County Emergency Management and Homeland Security director, said at a press conference. “Bystanders should no longer feel helpless, they should feel compelled to help. They are part of the chain of survival and we are empowering them to be successful in that role.”

Kits will be purchased using a State Homeland Security Program Grant and distributed to Central Ohio’s 15 regional counties through Ohio Emergency Management Services.