Click here to read a story from WRTV about an Indiana University student’s suicide by inhalation of hydrogen sulfide. The student left a note on his dorm room door that simply read “H2S.” Click here to learn more about the chemical properties of hydrogen sulfide.

The incidence of this new method of suicide is increasing and poses a serious risk to first responders, EMS, and fire personnel. An alert was recently issued by the regional FBI office regarding this hazard.

As always, be aware of your surroundings and use caution on all your runs. Scene safety is not something that can be effectively taught by reading a book. Preceptors need to teach this skill to their students on the street, and senior medics must convey the subtleties of scene safety to those with less experience. Many clues that may reveal a potentially unsafe scene or patient can be observed before entering a situation. Do not rely on dispatch information as your only source of information when making a judgment call about a precarious scene. Don’t ignore a “gut” feeling. You get this feeling for a reason and although it may not be explained or justified, it is not worth tuning out.

I read an article recently about how firefighters are trained to find and activate the emergency button on their radio simply by touch and without looking at the radio. Practice this skill (obviously, without actually setting it off) and remember that you must press the button and hold it for 4 seconds for the signal to be transmitted to MECA. This may seem easy and not worth practicing, however; under dire circumstances you don’t want to take the time to fumble around and figure this out for the first time

Never take your safety for granted.

Please comment on this topic and let me know about your close calls so that others may learn from the experience.