Quick cardMedical
Medical

Severe bleeding

Blood spurting out, pooling, soaking clothes, or not stopping.

Call 911
Do this nowTap each step when done
  1. 1Call 911 or ask someone to call.
  2. 2Put on gloves or a plastic bag over your hand.
  3. 3Expose the wound. Cut the clothing to see where the blood is coming from.
  4. 4Press hard with gauze on the bleeding point. Use all your weight.
  5. 5Arm or leg: tourniquet 2–3 in (5–8 cm) above the wound.
  6. 6Turn the windlass until the bleeding stops. It hurts: that's normal.
  7. 7Write down the time on the tourniquet or on the forehead ("T 14:35").
1. Press hard with gauze and all your weight   2. Tourniquet 2–3 in (5–8 cm) above   3. Turn the windlass until it stops   4. Write down the time on the tourniquet
Don't
  • Don't lift the gauze to "look." Add more on top.
  • Don't loosen or remove the tourniquet.
  • Don't place it over a knee or elbow.
  • Don't pack gauze into chest or abdominal wounds.
Have ready
  • Commercial windlass tourniquet, out of its package.
  • Gauze (preferably hemostatic) and a pressure bandage.
  • Nitrile gloves and trauma shears.
  • Permanent marker.
Key factStill bleeding? Put a second tourniquet above the first. Neck, armpit, or groin: pack the wound with gauze and press.

More detail

Ch. 7 · First aidOpen chapter
Next urgent cardChoking

Reviewed: Nov 2026 · Sources: Chapter 7 · First Aid