The Public Access Defibrillator (PAD) at Portelet has been returned to a new cabinet at the kiosk, after it had to be removed following vandalism.

The previous cabinet was put out of use after a fire in the toilet block. This meant the AED (Automated External Defibrillator) had to be moved temporarily to the reception area of the nearby Imperial Hotel.

Installation work on a replacement cabinet, which was completed in mid-June, was carried out by AFM and overseen by the Cardiac Action Group. The new green cabinet is an updated and more robust design and is similar to others seen at other PAD sites around the island. The Cardiac Action Group is a local charity that helps local businesses, groups and individuals install AEDs in public locations and provides free training on how to use them.

The Portlet defibrillator is one of a number of PAD sites in Guernsey maintained by the St John Emergency Ambulance service and checked on a weekly basis by a team of volunteer guardians.

Chief Ambulance Officer Mark Mapp said: “If someone has a cardiac arrest their chances of survival improves if there is early CPR and early defibrillation before the ambulance arrives, so it is important that we have as many publically accessible sites as possible and that people are confident using them. When you dial 999 the operator will tell you where the nearest AED is and tell you how to use it.”

Mike Froome, the Cardiac Action Group Community Resuscitation Development Officer added: “We are delighted that the Portelet PAD site is up and running again in time for the summer season. We have fifty-five PAD sites on kiosks and other building like this one and people are starting to become more aware of the location of them. We have another five about to be installed. The new cabinet makes it easy to see. AEDs are simple to use and come with verbal instructions so can be used by anyone. We are grateful to everyone who has supported the Cardiac Action Group in raising funds and awareness for the PAD site and with more funds being raised we hope to install more defibrillators at key locations in the future.”

St John and the Cardiac Action Group would like to thank the management and staff at the Imperial Hotel for their help while the cabinet at the kiosk has been out of action.

Anyone needing to access the AED in an emergency should call 999 and the JESCC operator will provide a key-code number to open the cabinet and give CPR advice over the phone.

The Cardiac Action Group now has almost sixty Public Access Defibrillators operational around the island.