GRIMES CO. SHERIFF’S OFFICE SETTING SCHOOLS UP WITH NEW MEDICAL EQUIPMENT

  

The Grimes County Sheriff’s Office is equipping area schools with hundreds of new trauma kits.

As part of the Sheriff’s Office’s active shooter response plan, it has ordered around 200 kits which will be given out to schools across the county. These “STOP THE BLEED” kits are approved by the Department of Defense, and include supplies like tourniquets, latex gloves, and other first aid items.

The project has been worked on by Investigator James Ellis since December of 2018. He said he noticed the area school districts did not have enough equipment to treat heavy trauma for an active attack event.  In addition, since Grimes County is a rural county, he said medical response time to schools can be delayed or extended.

Ellis said the Sheriff’s Office reached out to Lori Gaines, a paramedic in Austin County who has worked on a similar project for Austin County schools. He said Gaines gave him all the information he needed, as well as a contact for a medical source to obtain the kits.

Ellis’s goal was to equip all classrooms occupied by a teacher or student during regular business hours, along with common areas like the library, cafeteria, gym, and main offices.

While the 200 or so kits cost about $10,000, the sheriff’s office received donations from area businesses and raised the amount needed in less than a week. Ellis said the project won’t cost taxpayers anything.

Before the kits are sent out to schools, the Sheriff’s Office will provide free training for proper use of items in the kits. It will also hold training seminars prior to each semester, to make sure faculty are up to date on how to use the equipment.