Survival guides · First Aid & Health

Apply a Tourniquet

ACT NOWLife-threatening bleeding from an arm or leg that pressure won't stop.

1. Put it high

   
   • No tourniquet? Keep hard pressure and pack the wound (see: Stop Severe Bleeding) — improvised tourniquets often fail.
   • 2–3 inches above the wound, on bare skin or one thin layer.
   • Never on a joint. Wound near the elbow or knee? Go above the joint.
   • Can't tell where it's coming from? High on the upper arm or thigh.

2. Tighten until the bleeding stops

   • Pull the strap tight. Twist the rod (windlass) until bleeding stops.
   • It will hurt. That's how you know it's working.
   • Still a pulse below it? Not tight enough.

3. Lock it, write the time

   • Lock the rod in its clip.
   • Write "TK" and the time — on the tourniquet, or their forehead. (TK 14:35)
   • Leave it visible. Don't cover it with clothes or blankets.

4. Leave it on

   • Only medical staff take it off.
   • Never loosen it "to let some blood through."
   • Safe for up to 2 hours. Help is later than that? Still don't remove it.
   Why

   Loosening restarts bleeding the person may not survive twice — the risk of rebleeding outweighs the risk to the limb.

Sources: DHS Stop the Bleed Campaign · American College of Surgeons Committee on Trauma

General information to help in an emergency — not a substitute for training or professional care.