When a patient is bleeding out, the risk of death rises with every minute that passes, trauma experts have told The News. Rapid transfusions are the most effective way to treat hemorrhaging patients and buy them time until they can make it to a hospital.

When 7-year-old Marigny Wilson-Martin lost a significant amount of blood from a dog bite, New Orleans paramedics saved her life with an immediate blood transfusion. Inspired by this, Dallas Fire-Rescue has started a pilot program to equip ambulances with packed red blood cells to quickly respond to severe trauma cases.

The pilot program will equip two ambulances with donor blood, allowing paramedics to treat trauma patients en route to the hospital.