From staff reports
On Tuesday evening, Jan. 3, at the Beaufort Water Search and Rescue headquarters in Port Royal, the Burton Fire District presented Brandon Ulmer with an Immediate Responder Lifesaving Award for his assistance at a motor vehicle collision in 2022.
Last April, while traveling home with dinner, Ulmer came upon a motor vehicle collision involving severe trauma and critical bleeding. Brandon quickly applied a tourniquet that he carried in his vehicle to help stop the bleeding which helped save the life of the motorist. Burton fire officials state that when someone has severe bleeding, every drop of blood counts, not only in saving a life, but also helping that injured person recover quicker.
Ulmer is also a volunteer with the Beaufort Water Search and Rescue, a group of local volunteer boaters who respond to those in distress offshore. It was through his training with BWSAR that he learned how to treat critical wounds, and purchased a personal bleeding control kit called a JACOB Kit, to carry with him which he was able to use that day.
“We need people like Brandon in our community,” Burton Fire Chief Harry Rountree said. “Time is critical when someone is injured, and we cannot always get there in time, so we need citizens who are trained, willing, and able to render immediate aid and put time back on the life clock until we arrive. This award means a great deal to us and our community, and we are proud to recognize Brandon for his efforts, and for being the type of citizen that he is.”
For more information on the Burton Fire District’s Immediate Responder program or JACOB Kit program, email safetyed@Burtonfd.org or call the Burton Fire Districts headquarters station at 843-255-8011.
