Because of the generosity of this tiny settlement just north of the Waitaki River, residents and passers-by will be safer. The community has raised enough money to equip its volunteer fire brigade with a defibrillator - an electronic device to provide a person's failing heart with an electric current to jolt it back into rhythm.
The donation of the defibrillator has meant two firefighters have been trained to paramedic level PHEC (prehospital emergency care) - rare for a fire brigade - and a further two are about to begin training.
Glenavy's Chief Fire Officer Edwin Smith has welcomed the new equipment.
The settlement, on State Highway 1, was at least 15 minutes' drive away for an Oamaru-based ambulance.
‘‘We are in a valuable strategic position to provide an immediate response while an ambulance gets to the scene,'' Mr Smith said.
‘‘For a small brigade, we can be kept very busy with more than 50 calls a year on average. That's one a week and only a small percentage of those calls are to actual fires,'' Mr Smith said.
A third of callouts were to medical emergencies, a third to motor vehicle accidents, and the remaining third to fires.
He said the brigade identified the need for a defibrillator and called a public meeting last year to discuss fundraising opportunities.
‘‘We were amazed at the response and a total of $9000 was raised.''
That covered the cost of the $5000 defibrillator, with $4000 set aside for maintenance of the unit over time.
Mr Smith has been involved with the Glenavy Volunteer Fire Brigade since the brigade's inception in 1974, receiving his Gold Star for 25 years' service almost 10 years ago.
Living within 100m from the station, he was usually first down to the engine when the siren sounded.
Although the firefighters were highly trained in its use, the LifePak 500 defibrillator was a hugh help in emergency situations because it gave verbal instructions, reducing time taken to ascertain the heart condition.
Senior Station Officer Bevin Joyce, a member of the brigade for 19 years, said the machine actually talked.
‘‘A programmed voice tells us when there is no heart beat; when there is a normal but shallow heartbeat, and when to stand clear,'' Mr Joyce said.
‘‘This equipment takes the guesswork out of medical diagnosis to some extent. Sometimes it can be very difficult to detect a pulse, especially if there is internal bleeding.''
He said a charge would be delivered only if a person's heart was in a tremor, or in a state of heart muscle spasm.
The Glenavy brigade is administered by the Timaru branch of the New Zealand Fire Service and has 21 trained firefighters, one fire appliance and one tanker.
