A defibrillator is being installed in Leek in memory of Simon Morton.

Simon Morton suddenly passed away of a Cardiac Arrest whilst he was walking home from work on Belle Vue in Leek. In his memory, Simon’s family would like to raise funds to install a defibrillator around the West Street area of Leek town.

Friends and family of Simon are planning to cycle the Grand Union Canal starting on October 7th to raise funds and awareness of sudden cardiac arrest. They will start in the center of London, cycle back along the canal for approximately 180 miles, and end at the holly bush in Denford. This will take place over a period of three days.

30,000 people die each year from out of hospital Sudden Cardiac Arrest (SCA), 620 of these are people under the age of 35 and 270 of these deaths happen to children within schools. If defibrillation takes place within the first three minutes of a SCA, the patient’s chances of survival increase by upwards of 80%.

Having the defibrillator installed means that it can be deployed by the local ambulance trust in a bid to give the patient the all-important shock to the heart prior to the ambulance arrival. The defibrillator is by no means a replacement to the ambulance service, it just allows patient treatment to commence immediately.

If you are interested in becoming a Community Champion yourself or are aware of any places which may benefit from having public access to a defibrillator then please contact us on 01785 472224 or email us on info@aeddonate.org.uk. We will help you manage the campaign from start to finish, providing fundraising materials, a page just like this one and in some cases helping you to help your community on its way to becoming heart safe.