Council and Wellington Free Ambulance have worked closely with the South Wairarapa District Council (SWDC) to install new Automated External Defibrillators (AEDs) throughout 2025 and 2024.
Funding from Julie Nevett and The Lloyd Morrison Foundation allows the Wellington Free Ambulance to offer free community training for the use of AEDs and CPRs via the Heartbeat CPR training programme.
Having more of these life saving devices in our communities increases the chance of survival for people who suffer cardiac arrest,” says Stefan Corbett, SWDC Group Manager Corporate Services.
The latest AEDs to be installed are at the new Martinborough Pump Track, the Remutaka Hill Road end of State Highway 2 in Featherston, the Featherston Library and Museum Complex, and Greytown Memorial Baths. Another AED is soon to be installed at the front entrance to the Council’s main office on Kitchener Street, Martinborough.
13 new AEDs have been installed in South Wairarapa with funding coming through a variety of sources.
“Every minute counts in an emergency and the new AEDs are easy to use and with the community training that we provide, it increases the chance of surviving cardiac arrest,” says Cheryl Watson, Wairarapa Community Liaison for Wellington Free Ambulance.
“Every week an average of four to five people suffer a cardiac arrest across the Wellington and Wairarapa region. CPR can increase survival rates by 30% and combined with early use of an AED this figure increases by up to 80%.”
