The Hermiston Police Department has another set of tools its hopes may save lives.
The department recently purchased four new portable automated external defibrillator (AED) units as well as a trainer AED unit at a cost of $2,600.
The Hermiston Police Department recently purchased four automated external defibrillators that will placed in patrol vehicles.[/caption]“We will be placing the four units in four patrol vehicles driven by our sergeants and corporals,” said Hermiston Police Chief Jason Edmiston. “This will mean, at least initially, we will have a unit accessible to an on-duty shift nearly 100 percent of the time.”
Edmiston said AEDs can mean the difference between life and death in some cases. He recalled being on patrol some years ago and responding to a report of an elderly male having a heart attack in a local restaurant prior to the paramedics.
“Myself and a patron began CPR on this male with no success,” he said. “Statistics show the utilization of an AED early in an event, can increase the odds of a person surviving.”
Edmiston also is awaiting word on a separate grant for three additional AED units, but won’t know if the grant was successful until the spring. He added he plans to budget for three or four more units in the 2016-17 budget.
“Our troops having yet another resource at their disposal is important for us in our attempt to provide as professional of a service to those we serve as possible,” he said.
