Kinsale Community First Responders, a community run first response group, were recently supported with the donation of a new Defibrillator and Storage box provided by Cumnor Construction.

One of the groups responders, Brian McCarthy said “We respond to emergency calls tasked through the National Ambulance Service and we rely on our local defibrillator network to help save lives. Through the generous support provide by Cumnor, we’re able to expand our public network of emergency defibrillator devices with this latest unit located at Cumnor’s Convent Garden development in Kinsale Town”.

Kinsale Community First Responders have trained volunteer first responders in the community to respond to calls when needed.

Brian said that “when someone dials 999 or 112 in the Kinsale district area reporting a Cardiac Arrest, Chest Pain, Stroke or Choking, our group are alerted at the same time an ambulance is dispatched. As our responders live in the community, we can reach the patient quickly and provide assistance before the ambulance arrives”.

The group, part of the Community First Responder Ireland network, was formed in 2019 and is supported solely by fund raising and donations. All monies raised are put back into the community to keep emergency defibrillator devices up to date as well as provide equipment, supplies and training for the volunteer responders.

The group also recently held a fundraising and group awareness day in Kinsale which was generously supported by the local community raising €2,267.

Kinsale Community First Responders has two social media platforms if you’d like to be kept up to date on the group’s activities and both are accessible on Facebook and Twitter.

Photo: Eddie O’Mahony Director Cumnor Construction presenting a new Defibrillator to Colette Forde, chairperson Kinsale Community First Responders, at Cumnor’s Convent Garden development in Kinsale.