Bleed kits ripped up and emptied, council says

Two bleed kits in Bridgwater were found emptied on Friday morning

Two public bleed kits have been tampered with and emptied of their contents, a council has said.

Council cleaners found one bleed kit had been tampered with at Bridgwater Town Hall while another kit was found ripped open at Blake Gardens in Bridgwater early on Friday morning.

Bleed kits are designed to provide critical support in the first minutes following a severe injury such as a stabbing, road traffic collision or workplace accident.

"When a bleed kit is vandalised, stolen or interfered with it may no longer be usable, leaving it useless at the very moment it could save a life," said a spokesperson for Bridgwater Town Council.

"Such actions are not only reckless but potentially fatal," they added.

Each kit contains tourniquets, wound dressings, gloves, medical shears, a thermal blanket and clear instructions.

Many are located alongside public defibrillators.

The council added: "These kits are installed in the hope that they are never needed but if they are, they must be intact and ready to use.

"They carry no monetary value but in an emergency they are invaluable.

"Their absence could cost a life."