Two National Police officers have been praised for their quick-thinking actions after saving the life of a 27-year-old man found critically injured inside his home in Puerto de la Cruz, Tenerife.
The dramatic rescue took place on 23rd May after officers on patrol were approached by a local resident who feared a friend was attempting to take his own life.
According to an official statement released yesterday, the concerned friend had received a distressing farewell message accompanied by a photograph showing the young man lying on the floor covered in blood.
Realising the situation was potentially life-threatening, the officers immediately headed to the victim’s home in the centre of Puerto de la Cruz.
When they arrived, they knocked on the door and heard cries for help coming from inside the property. Faced with what they believed was an imminent risk to life, they decided to force entry to get in.
However, gaining access proved difficult. The patrol vehicle did not carry the usual equipment down doors, so the officers initially tried kicking and forcing the door. When that failed, they improvised by using a fire extinguisher to ram it open.
Inside, they discovered the 27-year-old man lying on the floor with a severe wound to his neck, believed to have been self-inflicted with a bladed weapon.
The officers immediately began administering first aid and emergency bleeding-control techniques, successfully slowing the massive blood loss while waiting for paramedics to arrive.
By the time medical teams reached the scene, the man was reportedly suffering symptoms consistent with hypovolemic shock and severe hypothermia caused by the significant loss of blood.
Thanks to the rapid response of both the police officers and emergency medical staff, the man was stabilised before being rushed to the Hospital Universitario de Canarias, where he underwent emergency surgery.
Police say the swift intervention almost certainly prevented a tragic outcome.
