The Hon. Brad Hazzard, Member for Wakehurst and Minister for Health, officially opened the Northern Beaches first ZAPSTAND 24/7 public access defibrillator at Cromer Park this week.
The official opening was a massive step forward for football on the Northern Beaches with the ZAPSTAND at Cromer Park the first in what is hoped to be a string of ZAPSTANDs at strategic positions all over the Manly Warringah Football Association footprint.
MWFA and the Cardiac Arrest Survival Foundation are currently working closely with the Northern Beaches Council and the NSW State Government to drive this project for the benefit of all 18,500 football players on the Northern Beaches and the broader community.
Representatives from Northern Beaches Council, Cardiac Arrest Survival Foundation, Ambulance, Paramedics, Police, Fire & Rescue, Football NSW, MWFA, Manly Rotary, Heart Beat of Football, and the local football community were on hand for the opening.
We were also extremely pleased to have Kirstie DSouza at the official opening.
The launch included a demonstration of how to respond to a cardiac arrest using a defibrillator, proving that with a little awareness and training, the defibrillator can be a life saver for any football players or members of the community who goes into cardiac arrest at a sports field.
MWFA would like to formally thank and acknowledge the work of Reno Aprile, John Tansley, Terry Gatward, Duncan Kerr, Andy Paschalidis and the Cardiac Arrest Survival Foundation in getting the project to this point.
