What to Do if You
Choke on Food
and Are Alone,
Accordingto
First-Aider
Oct 14, 2023 at 6:00 AM EDT
Most people have choked on a piece of food at some point during their lives, and they probably had someone nearby to help them. But have you ever thought about what would happen if you were to choke while alone?
First-aid instructor Kieram Litchfield, 39, has recently demonstrated what to do if you are choking and no one can help you.
Litchfield, from Tampa, Florida, advises people to use a desk, counter or chair to help dislodge the item from their throats. During the clip, he can be seen bending over a chair that is underneath his stomach, several times. You can also lift the chair into your belly.
The Six Tips That
Could Save Your
Life if a Nuclear
Bomb Went Off
Nov 10, 2022 at 7:01 AM EST
Tutorials on how to survive a nuclear explosion have gone viral across social media. But how accurate is the advice? Newsweek spoke to an expert in disaster preparedness to find out.
Since Russia invaded Ukraine in February, concerns about the potential threat of nuclear war have risen exponentially. Ukraine held drills on Tuesday to prepare for a potential nuclear strike by Russia in response to nuclear exercises overseen by President Vladimir Putin.
People have flocked to social media to share their concerns and look for advice on how to respond to potential future escalations.
One particular video, by TikToker Kieram Litchfield, has so far received 9.5 million views and over 10,000 comments. In the footage, Litchfield discusses the six S’s of nuclear survival:
- shelter in a concrete building
- sanitize your body
- secure all doors and windows
- prepare supplies
- choose an appropriate space
- stay put for 72 hours.
The advice is aimed at survivors who are at risk of exposure to nuclear fallout, which occurs when residual radioactive debris falls back onto the Earth after a nuclear explosion.
Litchfield’s video is far from the only nuclear survival video on the platform. Novice Prepper posted the TikTok How to Survive a Nuclear Explosion on February 25, the day after Russia invaded Ukraine. It has been viewed 5.4 million times.
Another, by user @perkyprepper, has had over 1.3 million views. In it, the user provides five steps to survive a nuclear attack. The steps echo Litchfield’s advice.
She said people should find shelter and stay inside, reduce contamination by taking off all their clothes and showering, then seal the shelter. Her advice is then to wait. Her final tip is to have things like food, water, flashlights and first aid kits prepared in advance of a nuclear war.
Floridians joke through Hurricane Ian fear: ‘Guess it’s time to party!’
Sept 28, 2022 at 3:30 PM EDT
Chloe Mayo was packing up her first-floor apartment on the Tampa waterfront this week when police cars arrived with megaphones, urging everyone to evacuate.
The 22-year-old insurance agent cleared her fridge, stuffed her suitcase and drove 15 miles inland to her mother’s house, hoping to dodge Hurricane Ian’s potentially catastrophic fury. Then she opened TikTok.
“Just left my apartment in Tampa to evacuate,” she posted, with audio that sounded like a goofy pep talk: Here we go! Here the f— we go! Here! The f—! We go!
“I just needed to lighten the mood,” said Mayo, one of the 2 million Floridians under evacuation orders — and one of many navigating fear with humor on social media. As Ian approached Category 5 strength, they danced in emptied grocery store aisles. They chugged tequila. They slept through warning sirens (but woke up as soon as the fan turned off).
Mayo had been sharing her life with roughly 12,000 followers for fun, but now the online community was starting to feel like a support group. People from across the country told her they were praying for her and cracked their own jokes. “Just a little rain, all good,” someone commented on her video of Tampa’s eerily red sky.
“They definitely help ease some anxiety — even if just for a second,” said Mayo, who wasn’t sure if she would ever be able to return to her apartment.
Ian slammed into Florida’s west coast Wednesday afternoon, unleashing calamitous floods and winds that could reach 155 mph. Photos showed wind-bent palm trees and yards underwater.
“This is going to be a nasty, nasty day,” Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) told reporters.
Communities across the low-lying Tampa Bay region — with 700 miles of coastline and 3 million-plus inhabitants — face an especially high risk of getting submerged. One Pinellas County resident, 38-year-old Kieram Litchfield, figured he was on high-enough ground to stay put.
The EMT who works in digital marketing boarded-up his windows, stocked his pantry and found a solar-powered laptop charger. Even if the electricity got cut, he wanted to keep posting survival tips for his 110,000 followers on Instagram.
“Let me show you how to board up your windows without using a drill,” he said in one video. “You’ll need a tape measure, hammer, tension clips, plywood, primer … and swag.
Each of his segments contained practical advice with a dash of levity. Lately, Litchfield, who launched his platform with mini CPR lessons, had been posting his personal strategies for coping with Ian.
“If you want to educate people, you have to entertain them,” he said. “I can literally reach millions of people with valuable information.”
About 130 miles south, Preice Anderson, a full-time TikToker, was entertaining himself with silly videos. That was better, he said, than thinking about the wind shaking his home.
The 34-year-old Cape Coral resident, a Florida native, had weathered decades of hurricane seasons.
“I know a lot of people who have never been through one, and I see them panicking,” he said. “I know it’s a serious thing, but let me put a little fun in it.”
Before it was time to hunker down, Anderson headed to Walmart and shot a skit captioned: HOW NON FLORIDIANS BE WHEN A HURRICANE IS COMING.
“Oh! Oh, my God! It’s a hurricane!” he wailed, frantically tossing rolls of toilet paper into a shopping cart.
He finished with the inverse: HOW FLORIDIANS BE WHEN A HURRICANE IS COMING.
“Welp!” he said brightly, hoisting a case of Coronas. “Guess it’s time to party!”
Life imitated art — somewhat. Yes, Anderson bought toilet paper, but he was not exhibiting signs of a panic attack. And rather than Coronas, he snagged his favorite snacks.
“I got my Cheez-Its,” he said. “I got my Slim Jims. I got my pistachios. I am ready for this thing.”