Bringing vital units back to life in city
Sunderland charity Red Sky Ball has paid for two life-saving defibrillator units in the city centre after the original machine was destroyed by vandals.
The cause usually raises money to help the Children’s Heart Unit Fund (CHUF), but after hearing about the loss of the machine, which had saved three lives before it was damaged, Red Sky Ball organisers decided to use some of their funds to reinstall the unit, as well as providing an additional machine.
Sergio Petrucci, from Tunstall, said: “I was shocked to hear that this vital machine had been damaged. The defibrillator had actually already saved three lives prior to it being vandalised, so we thought it crucial that we used some of the funds we have raised to restore it back to full working order. At the same time we identified that the installation of another machine would create an even safer environment for visitors to Sunderland city centre, so we took the decision to invest in another unit.”
He added: “The continued support we get from our sponsors and guests of Red Sky Ball means we’ve been able to spread the funds a little bit further.
“Using CPR alone provides a 5% chance of survival, but early use of the equipment actually increases the chance of survival to over 50%, which is why we were so eager to put the life-saving equipment into our city centre.”
The existing unit was restored to full working order and replaced outside of Boots on High Street West and another new unit has been fitted outside of The Pickle Bar on Green Terrace. Both units were kindly installed by the team from Fusion Electrical Contractors.
The Sunderland couple, who have raised more than £250,000 for charity, have been working with nonprofit organisations Cardioproof and North East Hearts with Goals to source the replacement machines.
As part of the new installations the North East Ambulance Service have teamed up with Red Sky Ball to provide a free-of-charge defibrillator training session between 10am–noon on Wednesday, October 10 at The Looking Glass in Sunniside which is available to anyone who would like to attend.