LIFE in Renfrew is about to get a bit safer, with two defibrillators to be installed in the town.

Members of Renfrew Community Council are delighted to have received a £4,000 grant that will allow them to place one of the ‘heartstart’ devices in Dunlop Crescent and another in the Broadloan area.

The welcome windfall has been provided by the Local Partnership Grant Fund and it is hoped the new devices will be installed by the end of March.

READ MORE: Registering every defibrillator in Renfrew can save lives in hour of need

Lindsay McKillop, secretary of Renfrew Community Council, told The Gazette: “It is so important to have these two defibrillators in such key locations in the town, where we hope they can be used to save lives.

“These are so vital to people and can be the difference between life and death.

“We hoped to have the first two installed within 18 months of starting and we are already ahead of that.”

At any given moment, someone could suffer cardiac arrest and be in vital need of emergency assistance but, often, it is not clear where the nearest defibrillator device is kept.

This means precious time could be lost searching for the nearest defibrillator or waiting for the emergency services to arrive.

Campaigners aim to register the location of all defibrillators with the Scottish Ambulance Service so that, in the moments after someone suffers cardiac arrest, medical experts can direct people towards the nearest device.

Members of the community council are now calling on local residents to get involved in ‘defib workshops’ they hope to run later this year.

Ms McKillop said: “We are asking people to come along and learn how to use the defibrillators.

“I want to thank the people who have already expressed an interest and we hope more will join them.

“We’d love for people in the area to get involved, as they are likely to be the ones who will be the first responders.

“The people of Renfrew are at the heart of this.”

If you would like to take part in one of the workshops or if you run a business that would like to support the defibrillator initiative, contact Renfrew Community Council through its Facebook page.

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