A new life-saver arrives at Helston fire station

If you’re ever the person standing over someone in cardiac arrest, waiting for an ambulance can feel like the longest few minutes of your life. Helston now has one more piece of kit that could shorten that wait, and it’s bolted to the wall of the town’s own fire station.

📷Credit: Helston Community Fire Station

Where to find it

Helston Community Fire Station has installed a new public access defibrillator (AED) on the front of the building on Redruth Road, and it’s there for anyone in the community to use, day or night. The yellow cabinet sits beside the station’s main door and is accessible 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Anyone using what3words can find the exact spot at ///ambushed.miracles.amphibian.

The cabinet also holds a bleed kit, so it can help with severe bleeding as well as cardiac arrest.

📷Credit: Helston Community Fire Station

You don’t need training to use it

The station is keen to stress that nobody should hesitate because they’ve never used a defibrillator before. In an emergency, the first step is to call 999. The ambulance service will talk you through what to do over the phone, and the AED itself gives clear, step by step audio and visual instructions once it’s switched on.

Helston Town Council and the Ronnie Richards Memorial Charity, which provides AED equipment and CPR training across the area, both back the cabinet, alongside the South Western Ambulance Service NHS Foundation Trust.

Every second counts

“Hopefully it will never be needed,” the station said in its announcement, “but having another defibrillator readily available in our community could make a vital difference when every second counts.”

The crew at Cornwall Fire and Rescue Service are asking residents to share the news so people across Helston know exactly where their nearest defibrillator is before they ever need to find it in a hurry. As the station put it: every minute counts, every second matters.

📷Credit: Helston Community Fire Station