AFTER three sudden deaths in their community, the Keeston Village Residents Association decided to take action.

Over the past year, the group has been fundraising to buy two Public Access Defibrillators (commonly known as P.A.Ds), in a bid to prevent further losses due to cardiac arrests.

“We have had three sudden deaths in the village in the last 18 months,” said Residents Association chairman Patricia Darley. “They were men in their early sixties, and we thought, if we had defibrillators, they might have been saved. Some other villages have them, and we decided to get some too.”

Having obtained part-funding from the British Heart Foundation grant scheme, the group needed to raise £800 for the two defibrillators and £600 for two specially designed outdoor storage cabinets to keep them in.

“Keeston Krafters donated a beautiful handmade quilt, which was raffled and achieved the grand sum of £1090.00,” said Patricia. “The winning ticket was drawn at our annual ‘Picnic on the Green’ event at the end of August, and the lucky winner was a lady from Llangwm. We have also received some very generous donations towards our goal.”

The Residents Association will site the life-saving equipment in West Lane Close and in the centre of the village near the Green. Although the machines provide step-by-step instructions and won’t activate if a person has a heartbeat, the Welsh Ambulance Service will visit Keeston to provide a demonstration and answer any questions people may have.

“Ideally, you need to use a defibrillator on someone who needs it within 10 minutes,” Patricia explained. “In rural places like Keeston, where it can take a bit longer for an ambulance to arrive, it’s good to have the ability to do something to help.”