Here's What To Do If You Are Hit By Tear Gas

The protests in Ferguson have caught the nation's attention as police respond with rubber bullets and tear gas. CS gas (or chlorobenzalmalononitrile), commonly known as tear gas, is a powerful chemical that can inflict pain within seconds. As a Marine, I handled CS frequently during my first enlistment as part of my job. Here are some steps you can take to ensure your safety if you are ever caught in the thick of it.

1. Hold your breath.

I've always described breathing in CS as feeling like getting kicked in the chest by a donkey. It hurts, and it will take effect quickly. Tear gas also results in a whole lot of mucus flowing from your nose. Breathing in tear gas can even induce vomiting. Your first reaction should be to immediately hold your breath. Just don't suck in a big breath first.

2. Close your eyes if possible.

Closing your eyes may not be possible depending on your surroundings, but if it is, you should be closing your eyes as quickly as you hold your breath. CS is a solid at room temperature so imagine tiny particles making their way into your eyes and tear ducts. Your eyes immediately overflow with tears and a stinging, burning sensation. Closing your eyes may be your best bet because you won't have that long to see anyway, which brings us to the next point.

3. Get out of the area as quickly as possible.

A CS canister, once shot, starts as a small concentrated cloud that quickly spreads to cover a larger area. In the first few seconds, you need to safely get away before you find yourself in a cloud. You may think you have a few seconds before you need to take action. You don't, as this image from last night showing an Al Jazeera reporter hit with tear gas will demonstrate.

Do yourself a favor and just get out so you can open your eyes and resume breathing.

4. If you take in tear gas, don't panic. Just remember the first three steps.

Being hit with CS is painful, but it shouldn't kill you. Do your best to remember that fact and stay calm. Go back over the first few steps outlined here as they will still help and follow the next few steps once you are clear from the scene.

5. Take out your contacts or wash your glasses if you wear either.

Your contacts will likely be covered in tiny CS particles. You'll need to remove them to prevent damaging your eyes. If you wear glasses, they will also be covered and sitting right over your nose. Wash them thoroughly with soap and water so you can still see out of them without risking spreading more tear gas into your eyes.

6. You may need to rinse your eyes.

Rinsing your eyes is tricky. As mentioned earlier, CS is a solid, so it will stick to your skin and cause a burning and stinging sensation. When you add water to the mix, it usually spreads. Your eyes will typically clear out the CS so you can see, but if you find yourself having trouble, rinse with a LOT of water.

An important note here: You can't stand in front of a sink and throw water into your eyes to wash it out. That will usually make it worse. Getting CS out effectively requires a lot of water, and you should tilt your head so that the water falls from one eye, across your nose, and onto the floor. Repeat with the other eye. You should be positioned like in the following photo:

6. Air out those clothes.

As a particle, CS is going to get to trapped in your clothing. If you happen to have a change of clothes for whatever reason, then changing will be your best bet. Seeing as that will most likely not be an option, you can carefully pat down your clothes, keeping the wind direction and your face in mind. You don't want to unleash a second attack on yourself from your clothes. You can also walk with your arms spread and allow the wind to do its work. Anything that can reduce the amount of CS on you will help.

7. Wash your hands.

This is extremely important. Your hands will be covered in tear gas. Wash your hands thoroughly with soap and water to ensure that you don't hurt yourself by accidentally touching your face. Also, you don't want to contaminate others.

8. Stay dry.

This means don't try and do a clean up job in a restroom or other public area. You will have CS everywhere, and if you try to wash it off, you will only succeed in spreading it. Sweat can also cause CS to run down your skin and into your eyes. This could cause your eyes to tear up again or you could breath in the tear gas causing pain in your lungs. At the least, your skin will be burning.

9. You need to get home and shower thoroughly.

Remove all your clothing and shower with a lot of soap and a lot of water. It's not going to be the best shower you've ever had. Keep your eyes closed when water is near and do your best to not breath in the CS. It may be a little painful, but you need to wash everything off. Be sure to pay attention to your hair, as there will be a lot of CS throughout your hair.

10. Wash your clothes separately.

You may be tempted to throw away the clothes you were wearing, but it's not necessary. If you wash your clothes well, the CS should wash out. This is a much better option than disposing of contaminated clothing.

Hopefully, you'll never find yourself in the middle of tear gas, but if you do, following these instruction can help keep you safe and make it as painless as possible.