The Gerringong, Oak Flats and Shellharbour Bendigo Bank branches has given away 50 defibrillators to local businesses and not-for-profit community clubs and organisations at an event held recently at the HARS Aviation Museum at Shellharbour Airport.

Gerringong Anglican Church, Gerringong Breakers Football Club, Gerringong RSL sub-branch, Gerringong Rotary, Gerroa Boat Fisherman’s Club and Kiama Junior Knights were some of the 50 organisations that were handed a defibrillator.

Guy Leech, the founder and CEO of Heart180 who has supplied the defibrillators, shared a chilling message at the event; cardiac arrest doesn’t discriminate.

“Sudden cardiac arrest is the biggest killer in Australia. We lose about 100 people a day,” he says. That figure includes children under 10 years of age.

As a former Australian Iron Man Surf Lifesaving champion and 2007 Celebrity Survivor winner, Guy says heart issues affect even those who are “in the top 1 per cent of fit people for their age group.”

“It can hit anyone,” Guy says. “For every minute after the first three minutes of not having a defibrillator on someone whose heart has stopped, the heart has 10 per cent less chance of kicking over. When you add the 12 to 15 minutes waiting for an ambulance, the chances of kicking that heart over with an electric shock is minimal.”

It is this statistic that Guy based his business off, and it all began when he lost his friend over 7 years ago despite starting CPR straight away.

Guy with some of the 50 organisations that were handed a defibrillator

“Had I had a defibrillator and got it on him within the first three minutes of his heart stopping, he would have had a 70 per cent chance of surviving,” Guy says.

He believes a defibrillator should be within a close enough proximity that a person can go grab a defibrillator and come back to the person in need, all within 180 seconds.

He applauds Seattle, where defibrillators originated from over 70 years ago, who has a device on every corner and at every shop, restaurant, schools and more, and where CPR and defibrillator courses are mandatory for students and people applying for their car licence.

“In Seattle when someone drops in the street, there are 5 people lined up to do CPR and a couple of defibrillators waiting to go on the persons chest. People have an over 60 per cent survival rate, compared to our 6 per cent here.”

While the defibrillators are simple to use, some training is required so that people feel confident using them in a tough situation.

Organisations were handed the same model of defibrillator that saved former Yellow Wiggle Greg Page’s life in 2020

The 50 local organisations have not only received the defibrillator but will also receive free online training.

Two years ago, Guy helped South Australia pass a bill to make defibrillators mandatory in Government buildings and buildings over 600 square metres. He says that the rest of Australia is way behind.

“That is the first lot of legislation from a Government which means a defibrillator is mandatory in a certain position. But the crazy thing is that it is not mandatory in schools and gyms," Guy says.

“We lose 100 people a year on average from fire related incidents and fire extinguishers are mandatory by Government regulation.

“We lost 100 people today from electrical issues with the heart and there is no mandatory reason to have a defibrillator.”

Guy thanks Bendigo Bank for being “so gracious and helpful” in getting more defibrillators in the community.

The number of defibrillators that has been handed out by Bendigo Bank now totals 90, after they gave away 40 in 2021.