The Mullumbimby Chamber of Commerce is looking to install up to ten defibrillators in and around the town, and they are seeking community and business support for the project.
‘We are hoping that there will be two in town and eight in the area and need to raise the money to make this possible,’ said Chamber President Jenelle Stanford.
‘I read a story in The Echo about an incident in Brunswick Heads at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, where a man at the river was resuscitated and survived with the use of a defibrillator’.
‘This triggered us to look into getting some available in Mullum.
‘Then COVID-19 hit, and it went on the back burner’.
Recently, a defibrillator fundraiser, led by Michael Ibrahim, was successful in acquiring them for local beaches after Phil Jones died at Wategos Beach.
Ms Stanford said, ‘We have managed to purchase two so far, and are looking for community and business support to purchase the other eight. We have set up a Go Fund Me page (www.chuffed.org/project/defibs-for-mullumbimby), so we can ask the public to help us purchase the others we want.
‘Of the first two to be installed, one will be on the outside wall of the Mullum Newsagency, on the corner of Burringbar and Stuart Streets and one at the Main Arm Store,’ she said.
A defibrillator is a device that restores the normal heartbeat. By sending an electric shock or pulse to the heart it can prevent or correct an uneven heartbeat, arrhythmia, or restore the heart’s beating if the heart suddenly stops.
‘This is a project I’m really passionate about because it saves lives,’ said Ms Stanford.
‘We went for the same type of defibrillator that the Byron fundraiser recently purchased, so that people in the region can be trained to use all the local defibrillators without confusion’.
Free training night
There will be free education sessions in Mullumbimby, Byron and Brunswick Heads for anyone interested in learning how to use the defibrillator.
To book, email: [email protected].