FAIRFIELD, Maine — Fairfield-Benton Emergency Services provided the Fairfield Police Department with six new lifesaving devices this week that will be available to officers when they respond to emergency calls.
Automated external defibrillators, or AEDs, are devices used to shock the heart of someone in cardiac arrest to correct the heart rhythm and restart the heart.
Police officers often are the first to arrive at the scene of an emergency, so it was important for them to have access to these devices.
“We're already out and about on the road," Fairfield police Officer Casey Dugas said. "The fire department is responding from the station most of the time, so we can get there minutes ahead of the fire department, so the intervention that much quicker is really important with cardiac emergencies.”
The Fairfield Police Department previously had only two AEDs and transferred them from vehicle to vehicle between each shift. But now they have one in every vehicle.
“They really work, and it's very nice to have them just in case,” Dugas said.
The effort was made possible by Ira Cohen, director of emergency management services, who helped secure a more than $7,000 grant to help purchase the devices.
“It is phenomenal," Cohen said. "It feels great because now I know the citizens that we serve already, in the event that they're in cardiac arrest, we know that if the law enforcement officer that arrives on scene came first and is able to get in there, we know he's able to get in there."
Dugas recalled seeing firsthand the difference that seconds make when an AED is on hand.
“That led to a successful save, and that gentleman is still alive and in town today,” Dugas said.
The grant was given to Fairfield-Benton Emergency Services by AEDGrant.com, a program that helps provide communities and organizations with AEDs.