Ukrainians have to help wounded during Russian shelling on their own

In Ukraine, Russian drones and missiles are hitting houses, cities, hospitals and ambulances, and medics arriving at the scene of the first strike can become targets themselves, UNIAN wrote citing Business Insider.

Therefore, civilians in the vicinity of the fighting have to be treated for injuries as on the battlefield, waiting for help for hours, if not longer.

This is a civilian survival problem in Ukraine, but it overlaps with the military problem. Soldiers on the battlefield often cannot count on the "golden hour" that saved the lives of Western troops in recent wars, when rapid evacuation and treatment increased the chances of survival.

The article notes that in the chaos of fighting in Ukraine, both on and off the front lines, the wounded may be alone for a long time.

This war is somewhat different from what we are used to. We used to control everything," Mark Antal, a former U.S. military officer who served 12 years in the U.S. Army's 1st Special Forces Operational Detachment Delta, told the publication.

The publication explains that in recent wars, Western forces typically fought with an air advantage, evacuation networks and rear areas that were safer than those Ukraine now faces. And Western civilians were far from danger.

In Ukraine, rockets and drones were fired at every part of the country, so, Antal said, "no one can ever feel safe." The West fears the same could happen to it in future wars.

That's why he and his wife founded an organisation that trains civilians in Ukraine to provide medical care before doctors arrive.

Jeffrey Wells, a US Navy veteran who fought in Afghanistan and Iraq, described the war in Ukraine as "one that is above all radically different from the conflicts the West has fought over the last 25 years."

During the wars in the Middle East, the West had enough control over the situation that if someone was wounded, "you could send a helicopter over there fairly quickly and get the wounded person to a hospital," he explained.

The explanation is that Ukraine does not control airspace the way the West did in Iraq and Afghanistan, where U.S. troops, though in grave danger, often had air cover, evacuation routes and more secure bases in the rear.

The war in Ukraine is a brutally gruelling struggle, and such precautions for soldiers or civilians are often simply not in place," the publication said.

Wells noted that "control of airspace is extremely important for surviving traumatic injuries," but the situation in Ukraine suggests that such control is not guaranteed in the future.

I think that, judging by Ukraine's experience, the era of full control over airspace, which has lasted for the last 25 years, may be coming to an end," he stated.

Wells explained that for Ukrainians, especially in cities on the front line, ambulance arrival times can be as short as an hour or as long as 12 hours.

Therefore, civilians must be prepared for long waits and be patient with rescuers. Antal noted that observation, patience and skill are required, and rushing out under fire can be costly.

Wells noted that Russia is increasingly launching an attack "and then waiting for emergency services to arrive on the scene before launching another strike."

For this reason, emergency services have to wait longer before intervening, which puts the brunt of first aid on the shoulders of civilians already on the scene.

Ukrainian civilians are helping each other amid the threat of secondary strikes, collapsed buildings and infrastructure, in total darkness, without heating or light sources, unable to move with the wounded for long periods of time as shelling and strikes continue.