Scout Skills

First Aid · Heat Illness

Heat Exhaustion

The body losing too much water and salt from heavy sweating — weak, dizzy, and sick, with cool, moist, heavily sweating skin. It's the warning stage before heatstroke, and a serious signal to act now.

Category
Heat illness
Skin
Cool, moist, sweating
Care
Cool + sip fluids
Red line
Confusion → 911

What to do

  1. 1Move the person out of the heat into shade or air conditioning.
  2. 2Lay them down and raise the legs and feet slightly.
  3. 3Remove tight or heavy clothing.
  4. 4Cool them actively — spray or sponge with cool water and fan them.
  5. 5Have them sip cool fluids — water, a sports drink with electrolytes, or another nonalcoholic, non-caffeinated drink (only if alert enough to drink safely).
  6. 6Monitor carefully and keep cooling.
  7. 7Escalate — call 911 if they faint, become confused or agitated, seize, can't drink, or show signs of heatstroke.

When to use it

  • Hot-weather hikes, summer camp, hard work or games in the sun — the common setting.
  • Catching a struggling scout early (dizzy, sweaty, nauseated, cramping) before it becomes heatstroke.
  • Telling "rest, shade, and fluids" from "needs 911 now."

Common mistakes & safety

  • Heat exhaustion can turn into heatstroke, which is life-threatening. Keep watching — any change to confusion, fainting, or not making sense means escalate to 911.
  • Cooling matters as much as fluids. Get them out of the heat and actively cool (wet skin + fanning); don't rely on drinking alone.
  • Don't give fluids to someone confused or who can't drink safely — choking risk, and a sign it may be heatstroke.
  • Skip caffeine and alcohol — both work against rehydration.
  • Rest and recover, don't push on. Someone with heat exhaustion shouldn't return to activity in the heat that day.
  • Prevent it: drink before you're thirsty, take shade breaks, pace activity, wear light loose clothing, and acclimatize gradually.

Going deeper

  • The heat-illness ladder. Heat cramps → heat exhaustion → heatstroke. Cramps and exhaustion are warnings; heatstroke is the emergency. Catching it early is the whole point.
  • Read the skin and the head. Cool skin that's still sweating usually points to heat exhaustion; hot skin with confusion points to heatstroke — but if in doubt, cool aggressively and call for help.
  • Electrolytes, not just water. You lose salt as well as water, which is why sports drinks are offered in heavy sweating.

Official source

Heat exhaustion: first aid — Mayo Clinic →

This is general first-aid information, not a substitute for hands-on training. Any change toward confusion or fainting means call 911.

Related skills

First AidHeat Stroke First AidDehydration First AidSunburn & Sun HikingHydration First AidHurry Cases First AidFirst Aid Kit