Residents club together to pay for defibrillator
Worthing residents have clubbed together to fund a Community Heartbeat Trust defibrillator for their estate, spurred on by Danish footballer Christian Eriksen's cardiac arrest on the pitch at Euro 2020.
New West Durrington Residents Association represents the 700 homes constructed by Taylor Wimpey, Persimmon and Bovis (Vistry) Homes on the land behind Tesco and over the past six years, a friendly, family-orientated community has developed on the estate.
News of the Euro 2020 incident, when Eriksen was given instant medical assistance, with CPR and a defibrillator being used before he was stretchered off, got people thinking.
Pip Dennis said people started talking about where their nearest defibrillator could be found. Although there is one available at Tesco nearby, it is not accessible 24/7, so the association decided to start fundraising for a device for the estate.
Pip said: "It came about after the Danish footballer had a heart attack on the pitch. A resident posted in the Facebook group for the estate, asking where our nearest defib was and said that we should have one on the estate.
"We have been raising funds as a community. I organised two community events, called Picnic on the Green, where we had a tombola, raffle and table top sale.
"I applied for a donation from the Police Property Act Fund and we had larger donations from two residents, one of which lost their son to a heart condition."
The device has been installed near the central green, on the corner of Sunflower Street and Celandine Road. WorthingmayorHennaChowdhury joined residents at the site on Monday to officially launch the new defibrillator.
She said: "I am just so happy to know that the residents here worked so hard, tirelessly, to raise money for this valuable asset, so if anyone needs the help, they know where it is. Hopefully, no one will ever need to use it but if they do, it is here."
Pip explained that fundraising will be ongoing to cover maintenance costs and the association will continue to be responsible for ensuring the device is in working order.
The association will also be organising some community training sessions.