East Midlands Railway (EMR) is to install lifesaving defibrillators across 22 railway stations on its network.
The locations of the defibrillators were put forward by station adopters and local community rail partnerships, and include areas such as Derbyshire, Staffordshire, Lincolnshire, Leicestershire, Nottinghamshire and Northamptonshire.
Each defibrillator comes with step-by-step instructions built into the unit which explain how to use it should someone suffer a cardiac arrest. The computers inside the defibrillators work by analysing people’s heart rhythms to find out whether an electric shock is needed. If required, electrodes then automatically deliver the shock.
Having a defibrillator close when someone suffers a cardiac arrest greatly improves their chances of survival. According to the British Heart Foundation, for every minute it takes for a defibrillator to reach someone to deliver the shock needed, chances of survival reduce up to 10%.
Phil Thomas volunteers his time as a station adopter at Radcliffe Station in Nottinghamshire and is delighted that a defibrillator will be installed at his local station. He said: “The importance of having a defibrillator readily accessible to help someone in an emergency situation is life-saving. We are very grateful to EMR for placing a unit at our local station in Radcliffe-on-Trent, adding to the network we have around the village.”
Donna Adams, Community Engagement Manager at East Midlands Railway, said: “Each second counts when someone has a cardiac arrest, and with many thousands of people passing through our stations each day, they are ideal place to install a defibrillator.
“We are pleased to be able to contribute to such an important project and bring such vital equipment to communities right across the region we serve.”
The 22 units are to be fitted at the following stations:
- Belper
- Blythe Bridge
- Burton-on-Trent
- Chesterfield
- Crewe
- Derby
- Duffield
- Kettering
- Leicester
- Lincoln
- Long Eaton
- Loughborough
- Matlock Bath
- Narborough
- Nottingham
- Radcliffe
- Skegness
- Tutbury and Hatton
- Wellingborough
- Whatstandwell
- Whitwell
- Willington
Find out more about community rail initiatives across the EMR network here.
