Life-savers present new defibrillator to Newhaven pub

Paul Harris suffered a heart attack at the Ark Pub in West Quay, Newhaven, in February 2016. Darran Sampson, a trained firefighter, was not working at the time but did not hesitate before beginning CPR. He continued for more than an hour until two paramedics, Glen and Gerry, arrived and continued the life-saving treatment on the way to the hospital.

Following the incident, the pub’s landlady Penny Payne and her customers decided to start a fundraising campaign in a bid to raise money for a defibrillator.

Nigel Ring of the Seahaven Responders heard of this and having recently had a new unit donated through the Mayor of Newhaven’s fundraising, agreed to release its original one into the community.

The fundraising of the pub and Mayor Steve Saunders is continuing and Steve is hoping to raise enough funds to replace another of the Responders’ units and release another defibrillator into the community.

“It would be great to see these life-saving kits available all around the town, and Penny’s commitment to raising more money, is a fantastic help towards ensuring we can get them out there,” said Steve Saunders.

“Paul now has his own defibrillator and pacemaker fitted, so hopefully the paramedics won’t need to be called in to help him again in the near future.

“I would like to say a huge thank you to the local ambulance crews, especially Glen and Gerry, as well as of course Darran for his selfless dedication.”

During his time as Mayor, Steve Saunders is raising money for two charities - Newhaven Lifeboat and Seahaven Responders.

The latter asked for donations to purchase two new defibrillators, which would allow them to release the two they previously used into the community.

The specialist equipment they wish to obtain is a Lifepak 2000, which is able to link directly with the ambulance and hospital equipment, and download data from the machine about the patient and the emergency procedures at the incident. They cost around £1,000 each to buy.

For more information on the Seahaven Responders, or to donate to the cause, visit the website at http://seahavenresponders.org.

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