Paris City Disaster: Response to the Recent Terror Attacks and Lessons Learned

Abstract

The purposes of this review are to analyze the medical response to the terrorist attacks of November 2015 in Paris and to outline the lessons learned in France that can be useful for other trauma care systems. The recent published reports and the occurrence of new attacks in Europe and North America demonstrate the need for civilian emergency medical service (EMS) systems to be prepared to face mass casualties of victims injured by powerful military weapons such as assault rifles or bombings. A terrorist attack is not a natural or a technological disaster; it is a strategy using surprise and violence to spread fear and panic. Adaptability, aggressive training program, and mutual trust of all the services involved in the neutralization of terrorists or the rescue and the care of casualties are mandatory to provide an efficient global answer. This will not only save lives, it will be also the first step of resilience.