Two wheels better than four in crowd emergencies

The Navan branch of the Irish Red Cross has unveiled a fleet of four new mountain bikes to react to emergencies beyond the immediate reach of ambulances. Transport officer with Navan Red Cross, Liam Perry, says that larger gatherings sometimes prove difficult to negotiate with vehicles and that the bikes, which will operate in pairs, are there to save precious seconds. "With gatherings like St Patrick's Day, for example on Trimgate Street, or with Dunderry Fair, the reasoning behind the bikes is that it quickens the reponse time through crowds or with events, such at locations like Killeen Castle, which we will attend for the Solheim Cup, you have around 35 miles of pathways and that's a lot of ground to cover so there might be situations where an ambulance might not make it to someone as quickly as the bikes. "There's two volunteers in each bike team; one with the automated external defibrillator (AED) and oxygen and the other with first aid and trauma equipment, and both the teams and the bikes are in use now and ready to go," he said. The bikes and Navan Red Cross' two vehicles - an ambulance transit vehicle and an off-road 4x4 kitted out to work as an ambulance - had to be paid for through local fundraising for which the volunteers are "extremely grateful", the latest of which was the "very well-attended" table quiz in the Silver Tankard on the Navan-Kells road. Emma Condren is the officer in charge of the Navan unit: "Bascically it cuts down the response time because every minute spent by ambulances trying to get across crowds or to areas where it is difficult for them the odds on surviving a cardiac arrest, for example, can go down by as much as five or ten per cent. "The two bike teams will work in tandem with the ambulances but the point is that contact is made quicker by the bike teams where and when necessary," she said. Recently two Navan heroes were part of a lightening-quick Red Cross ambulance team that brought a man back to life at a car rally in Monaghan. The team, alongside a Monaghan member, were so quick and their response so successful that the man was sitting up and talking within minutes of having gone into arrest. Navan Red Cross now has between 25 to 30 members and around 30 'cadets.' "I hate to say cadets because they are fully trained, just younger," said Emma, who is still looking for new members. If you are interested in learning a life-saving skill contact unit officer Emma Condren on (087) 218 1814, check their website, www.navanredcross.ie, or call in to St Anne's Hall, The Fairgreen, Navan, every Monday night (except bank holidays) where training for cadets starts at 7pm and for adults at 8.30pm.