EAST BOSTON (WHDH) — After two of their comrades were shot last night, two police officers stepped directly into danger to help save them.
As ambulances and emergency medical teams were rushing to the scene, Boston Police Commisioner William Evans said the assisting officers dragged the wounded as they exchanged fire so they were in a protected zone.
Assisting officers administered first aid quickly, applying a tourniquet to help stop the bleeding.
“One officer had his hand in one of the wounds,” Evans said. “I think that was instrumental in getting him to Mass. General quickly.”
Mayor Marty Walsh expressed his pride in the city’s police forces after speaking with some of the officers involved.
“Oftentimes people don’t look at the other side of what happens with police officers,” Walsh said.
Fifty police officers gathered to pray for the injured and the safety of all officers.
Boston Police confirmed that two police officers are in critical condition at Massachusetts General Hospital.
The police shot the dead the suspect, who was armed with a rifle and wore a ballistic vest.
The shots come after police responded to a call for a possible domestic incident on 136 Gladstone Street before 11 p.m. Wednesday night when a gunman opened fire.
“We heard officers screaming on the radio,” said Boston Police Commissioner William Evans. “Shots fired and an officer down. The officers were screaming officer down.”
Both policemen were identified as males, one policeman serving 28 years in the department, the other 12 years.
Nine others were admitted to MGH for stress and other injuries.
Doctor Manuel Pacheco, of Tufts Medical Center, said first responders react both physically and emotionally in the moment because their bodies go into emergency mode as they fight for their lives and the safety of others. It can sometimes be difficult to come down off that level of alertness.
“Before you even get involved in a situation, automatically, your system is going to get into a heightened state of awareness,” Dr. Pacheco said. “Your blood pressure is going to be up a little bit, your adrenaline level is going to be up a bit, it’s a protective response.”
Dr. Pacheco said it is not just the immediate aftermath that he and his team have to worry about when treating first responders after something traumatic, but also the follow up.
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