Two defibrillators damaged in Tralee and Wicklow as group calls for penalties

Community First Responders (CFR) Ireland has re-issued a call for "strict penalties", including imprisonment, for anyone involved in vandalism against public defibrillators after two more of the life-saving devices were damaged this week.

One defibrillator was vandalised in Market Square in Wicklow town, while a second was damaged on Ashe Street in Tralee, Co Kerry. The latest vandalism follows attacks of four other defibrillators over the Christmas period - in Ballina, Co Mayo; Blarney, Co Cork; Sallynoggin, Co Dublin and Tullow Street in Carlow town.

CFR Ireland is also calling for cross-party support for the Life Saving Equipment Bill 2017 which would impose a maximum sentence of five years imprisonment or a €50,000 fine, or both, for those convicted of damaging or stealing a defibrillator or life buoy.

CFR Ireland confirmed that the defibrillators in Mayo, Cork, Dublin and Carlow had been repaired or replaced with the support and fundraising of local community and businesses but warned that communities in Wicklow and Tralee had now been left without this life-saving piece of equipment.

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Caroline Mooney, coordinator of Wicklow town CFR, described the vandalism as “a real slap in the face”, while Thomas White, coordinator of the Tralee CFR branch, said the group would have to spend “considerable money” from “limited funds” to get the device back up and working. “This money now has to be taken to repair the damage which further delays us going back responding alongside the National Ambulance Service to Cardiac Arrest call-outs,” said Mr White.

Dr David Menzies, medical director of CFR Ireland, underlined that damage or theft of a defibrillator “could be a death sentence” for a patient in cardiac arrest. “It is that serious. Locking up AEDs isn’t the ideal solution - you wouldn’t lock up a fire extinguisher.”

In the event of a cardiac arrest, CPR and defibrillation within the first 10 minutes is the most important intervention with the patient’s chances of survival dropping by 10 per cent for every minute that treatment is delayed. There are estimated to be over 13,000 AEDs in Ireland.

Community First Responders (CFRs) are volunteer civilian responders who are trained in cardiopulmonary resuscitation and defibrillation and are linked to the National Ambulance Service.

When the emergency services are alerted to a cardiac arrest, chest pain, choking or stroke, a civilian responder from the local CFR scheme is automatically dispatched along with the ambulance services. There are currently 270 CFR schemes around the country, all linked to the National Ambulance Service.