Gorseinon Crew receive Chief’s Certificate of Appreciation

Firefighters from Gorseinon Station have been awarded with Certificates of Appreciation from Chief Fire Officer, Chris Davies for their heroic efforts over the Christmas period, which saw members of Gorseinon Crew disregard their Christmas curries to save a gentleman who collapsed outside of the restaurant. ‌​‌​‌​​​‍‌​‌​​‌‌‌‍‌​‌‌​​‌​‍‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‍‌​‌‌‌‌​​

Peter Snell, Crew Manager at the Gorseinon station said, ‌​‌​‌​​​‍‌​‌​​‌‌‌‍‌​‌‌​​‌​‍‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‍‌​‌‌‌‌​​

“We were enjoying a Christmas meal when we became aware of a gentleman who had collapsed outside. We went to assist and identified that Mr. Rowlands had no pulse and was not breathing” ‌​‌​‌​​​‍‌​‌​​‌‌‌‍‌​‌‌​​‌​‍‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‍‌​‌‌‌‌​​

“We immediately commenced CPR while one of the crew went to the Spar store on High Street to obtain their defibrillator. On applying the pads to the person’s chest, no heart activity was detected and a shock was applied” ‌​‌​‌​​​‍‌​‌​​‌‌‌‍‌​‌‌​​‌​‍‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‍‌​‌‌‌‌​​

“A response was detected after this, and we continued with full CPR during the arrival of an ambulance. We continued to assist the ambulance crew until Mr. Rowlands was stable enough to be moved to the ambulance and transferred to Morriston Hospital”. ‌​‌​‌​​​‍‌​‌​​‌‌‌‍‌​‌‌​​‌​‍‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‍‌​‌‌‌‌​​

Chief Fire Officer Chris Davies was joined by Mr. Rowlands daughters, and supervisors from Spar Gorseinon, as he presented the certificates to the firefighters; ‌​‌​‌​​​‍‌​‌​​‌‌‌‍‌​‌‌​​‌​‍‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‍‌​‌‌‌‌​​

“You were all confronted with a challenging situation and were able to utilise the skills learned in your firefighting role to save the life of the gentleman concerned. The gentleman’s family has made it very clear that without your presence of mind and timely intervention the outcome could have been different” ‌​‌​‌​​​‍‌​‌​​‌‌‌‍‌​‌‌​​‌​‍‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‍‌​‌‌‌‌​​

“I would like to take this opportunity to commend you for your professionalism at this particular incident and for upholding the best traditions of the Fire and Rescue Service” ‌​‌​‌​​​‍‌​‌​​‌‌‌‍‌​‌‌​​‌​‍‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‍‌​‌‌‌‌​​

“What makes this story that much more is special is that the defibrillator was a result of community fundraising by the local Spar. Members of Spar Gorseinon identified a need for public access defibrillators in their community, and this story proves just how important public access defibrillators are in emergency situations. ‌​‌​‌​​​‍‌​‌​​‌‌‌‍‌​‌‌​​‌​‍‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‍‌​‌‌‌‌​​

Mid and West Wales Fire and Rescue Service is currently working with the charity Cariad to situate defibrillators on appliances and in community buildings”. ‌​‌​‌​​​‍‌​‌​​‌‌‌‍‌​‌‌​​‌​‍‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‍‌​‌‌‌‌​​

Rebecca Rowlands thanked the crew, ‌​‌​‌​​​‍‌​‌​​‌‌‌‍‌​‌‌​​‌​‍‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‍‌​‌‌‌‌​​

“My family and I are so grateful. Had you not been there at that exact moment and acted as you had, my father would not have made it. Thank you so much”. ‌​‌​‌​​​‍‌​‌​​‌‌‌‍‌​‌‌​​‌​‍‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‍‌​‌‌‌‌​​