Three life-saving charities have been given a set of wheels to help them respond to emergencies faster.
Family-run car dealership Gillanders donated a brand new car to the newly-formed group The Lossiemouth Co-Responders at RAF Lossiemouth.
Scotland’s Charity Air Ambulance (SCAA) and the Scottish Ambulance Service’s Wildcat Cardiac Responders received their cars in 2020 and 2021 respectively, but both came along to the official ceremonial handing over of the keys.
The three cars are worth a total of £73,535.
It is hoped the cars will allow first responders to get to rural emergencies faster, potentially saving more lives.
Survival rates can decrease by 10% for every minute without critical first aid such as CPR and defibrillation.
Lossiemouth Co-Responders can now start working
Lossiemouth Co-Responders, based at RAF Lossiemouth, is made up of service and ex-service personnel and will be working on behalf of the ambulance service to respond to emergencies across Moray.
The team are thrilled with the donation from Gillanders, as they have spent 18-months looking to source a vehicle without success.
Now that the group has received their MG HS car, they can go on shift for the first time on January 23.
Ricky Laird, SAS community resilience team leader, said: “Our co-responders play a vital role in supporting the SAS in reaching our critical care patients in rural areas.
“This vehicle is a fantastic resource and it will allow our co-responders in Lossiemouth to provide a life-saving service to the community.”
‘Outstanding support’
Meanwhile the Wildcat Cardiac Responders – formerly known as the The Sandpiper Wildcat project and SCAA continue to be delighted with their vehicles, a MG ZS and a Kia Niro respectively.
The Wildcats use an app system to alert volunteers in the nearby area who will use CPR or a local defibrillator to act before an ambulance has arrived.
Gillanders has been providing the Wildcats and SCAA with vehicles for years, helping save countless lives.
Nick Harvey, director of fundraising and communications at SCAA said: “Gillanders’ ongoing support for SCAA – and its life-saving work across the country has been simply outstanding.”
The donations not only help save lives immediately, but also mean all money raised by the charities can be used for operational delivery rather than transport costs.
Gillanders’ general manager Mark Stevenson said: “We have seen the incredible differences the existing projects make to people’s lives, often on their worst days, and we were delighted to be able to provide another MG HS to assist the newly-formed team.
“It is a privilege to play a small part in these fantastic projects that support the communities we rely upon.”
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