Initial medical response to the attack on the Bardo Museum

Terrorism constitutes an exceptional situation that leads to a sudden mismatch between the needs of victims and the capacity to care for them. The aim of this study is to describe the organisation, management and care of victims, as well as the shortcomings observed during the Bardo attack (automatic gunfire by two terrorists against museum visitors, with the premises occupied but no hostages taken). This is a retrospective descriptive study covering 67 victims of the Bardo attack on 18 March 2015. Following the initial wave of evacuation of the injured outside the museum, all resources were gathered in the museum car park, and the evacuation of the injured inside took place as and when it was possible to move them under fire. Analysing the various stages of the organisation and management of victims of terrorist attacks among the different responders on site, as well as sharing experiences with others, helps to identify shortcomings and improve the performance of rescue teams, thereby saving even more lives.