Learn how to make an Emergency Tourniquet using paracord, in this educational video. If you get wounded in the wilderness and need to stop blood flow, make a quick and effective emergency tourniquet.
No matter how careful you are, accidents and animal attacks can, and do, happen in the wilderness. If you find yourself in a situation where bleeding does not stop on its own, your only hope is a tourniquet. Tourniquets should only be used in a situation where the person has the potential of bleeding to death. You do not want to unnecessarily cut circulation off to a limb. It could cause more damage than good.
It is a good idea to replace your boot laces with SurvivorCord or WarriorCord so that you have an ample supply of parachute cord on you at all times. Instead of making them the same length as the original shoelace, make it extra-long, and wrap it around the top of the boot a few times.
To make a tourniquet unravel the extra boot laces from your boot. Cut off one of the lengths of extra paracord from your boot, leaving enough so you can still tie your laces. One side of the boot lace should be enough for the average person’s arm or leg. Create a Canadian Jam Knot on one end of the paracord.
To make a Canadian jam knot, tie a simple overhand knot at the end of the paracord. Tie a second loose knot a foot or so from the end. Then wrap the paracord around your limb above the wound and work the free end of paracord through the center of the second knot and pull tight.
A pocket knife with a belt clip could also be used to tighten and loosen the tourniquet. Place the paracord in the belt clip and simply turn to tighten. Turn in the opposite direction to loosen.
Good luck and happy exploring!
