Steve Collins delivering training to a class of 60 women police officers from around the world on the true dangers of the edged weapon

 The thought of being stabbed or slashed with a blade fills us all with trepidation.

Throughout history criminals have always known that the knife creates more physical and psychological terror than any other weapon. This is why knives are often the preferred weapons of the armed robber and, as 9/11 showed us all, the use of edged weapons can create such terror and control over others that the end result can be so catastrophic it doesn’t bear thinking about. There are literally hundreds of knife fighting styles around the world, but whether they are Oriental or Occidental, the techniques of knife attacks fall into two main categories: slashes/cuts and stabs/thrusts Slashes/Cuts A slashing cut is the most often used strike in a knife attack and there are three types: the power slash, the snap cut and the hook cut. The power cut is a forceful blow using the shoulder and back muscles, similar to the forehand stroke of a tennis player. Although quite a large movement, this cut can be executed in a surprisingly small space. The snap cut involves a different body motion, resembling the strike of a cat’s claw. The knife is snapped out towards the target, wrist cocked back. When contact is made with the area to be cut the blade is simultaneously drawn sharply back. Although not as powerful as the power cut, it is much, much quicker. The hook cut is aimed to the rear of the area to be cut, and is ripped though the target with a powerful semi-circular hooking action. Stabs/thrusts As with slashes there are three kinds of stabs or thrusts: the standard stab, the snap thrust and the hook thrust. In the standard thrust, the knife travels in a straight line to the target. Power is critical if deep penetration is the goal. The snap thrust however, is jabbed at the target quickly and lightly without a pause, a bit like a piston. Power and deep penetration are not the objective of this type of attack. The hook thrust is exactly the same as a boxer’s hook punch and is usually aimed at the side of the body below the ribs. The hook thrust is a powerful, penetrating stab. Types of knife wounds A proficient and skilled knife fighter will have a practical knowledge of human anatomy in order to enable him to inflict as much damage as quickly as possible. However, if you are attacked and cut it makes no difference whatsoever whether your assailant was skilled or not, your wound will fall into one of three categories. It will be a bleeder, an immobiliser or an instant kill. Bleeder wounds result from the severing of an artery. They are often fatal if unattended. There are several arteries that if severed, will cause death in less than one minute. (This is not classified as an instant kill). A bleeder will almost always be caused by a slash, as an artery is very difficult to sever with a stab. Blood from a true bleeder will spurt with each heart beat as opposed to a superficial cut, which may bleed profusely at first but will clot and stop after a few minutes. Immobilising wounds are usually dealt to specific muscles and tendons of the limbs. A true immobiliser will cut to the bone, rendering the muscle group and limb useless, but even a small cut can have the same psychological effect. As with the bleeder, the immobiliser is usually achieved with a powerful slash. All knife wounds can be fatal; however wounds that cause death in ten seconds or less are called instant kills. All the targets are located on the head and torso. Most instant kill targets are partially protected by bone; some are totally covered by it. Therefore this type of attack requires skill, accuracy and an extremely powerful delivery.

So what’s the answer?….Awareness!!

Awareness of just what an edged weapon is capable of, even in unskilled hands. Awareness and an understanding that virtually anything can be, and has been used as an edged weapon. Being aware that the vast majority of people that are attacked with a knife will be cut, and that you are probably no exception. A penetration of only a few millimetres into the throat can be fatal, and a blade of less than two inches long can penetrate vital organs including the heart. Severing a major artery (a bleeder) can cause unconsciousness in seconds and death in a minute or so. You must understand that a small blade is just as deadly, if not more so, than a large one. Point being, you can see a large knife, but with a small or disguised knife you could be cut or stabbed twenty times before you’ve even realised he’s armed. The sudden realisation of even a small cut can have massive psychological and debilitating effect on some people. Shock, trauma, paralysis, hysterics, nausea and vomiting…and you don’t know how you will react until it happens. So don’t allow it to happen. Learn how to recognise disguised knives and be aware just how deadly a blade can be. Plus, never forget…If you carry a knife you are a potensual murder.

Read my post  ”If you carry a knife you are a potential murder”

Readers of my journal PCW Review will remember the features we have run on knives and knife attacks. However many do not fully understand the ease with which knife attacks can cause death. The increase in knife related crime on the streets all over the world is at an all time high.

Although the carrying of knives has been with us for the past few thousand years and is therefore never going to go away, there does seem to be a new ethos with adolescents and teenagers that carrying a knife is not only necessary for personal protection but a really cool thing to do.

Hospitals receive hundreds of victims of knife attacks every month, with figures of 55% of murders attributable to knife wounds being reported.

It’s simple, if you carry a knife you are a potential murder.

If you attack or defend yourself with a blade and you don’t kill the person it’s probably luck. Just piercing the skin can be all it takes. There’s a very fine line between a minor cut and a fatal wound.

This wound occurs when skin is rubbed or scratched away at the surface. A scrape is normally not a fatal wound, but it has been known for people to get a small scratch infected and die from blood poisoning.

Laceration or slash

This wound is a cut, split or gash in the skin. It can have either a jagged or smooth edge. It is longer than it is deep.If a wound such as this involves major blood vessels, it will be life threatening, but generally this type is not as seriousas a stab wound.

Puncture or stab

This wound is when the skin is pierced. It is deeper than it is long. Because they penetrate more deeply than lacerations they tend to come into contact with vital organs especially in the chest and abdomen. Stabbing is the most common cause of homicide in the UK.

It is crucial to understand that stab wounds, although less common than slash wounds, can be made with minimal force. Once the point of a blade penetrates clothing and skin, very little force is required to follow through and create a deep wound. Furthermore, the faster the stab the easier it is to penetrate.

Impaling

This wound is basically an extreme form of puncture. It is when a blade such as a sword, bayonet or any other sharp object has passed totally through a part of the body.

Avulsion or flaying

This wound is when a portion of skin is torn. This can be partial, with a portion of skin remaining as a “flap.”

A total avulsion, is when a body part is completely torn away.

DEFENSIVE WOUNDS

Victims can sustain very characteristic injuries when they have tried to ward off blows from a knife attack. There are often multiple lacerations across the palms of the hands where there have been attempts to grab the blade. Also it is common to see defensive wounds found on the outer aspects of the forearms. It’s as easy to kill with a laceration as it is to wound with a scratch. If the body is punctured or impaled it will only be by chance if the blade doesn’t hit a vital organ or artery. Most people who carry a knife believe that it offers them protection. In reality it only offers them a life sentence or even a death sentence.

The bravado displayed by knife carrying adolescents and teenagers is frightening and is born out of total ignorance about what a knife can do. However, accidental murder is still murder. Stab somebody in the chest, it might just hit the bone and the victim may survive. But, if the blade gets through the ribs and penetrates a vital organ, well that’s a different story. Any knife, no matter how large or small, can kill. From combat weapons to the potato knife in your kitchen drawer they are all are so accessible, any one can get hold of one, but most people are totally oblivious of how easy it is to inflict a fatal injury.”