The Carmarthen Journal has launched an appeal to raise £50,000 to place life-saving heart defibrillators in police cars across Dyfed Powys.

The Have A Heart campaign, co-launched with Dyfed Powys Police aims to help give heart attack victims a better chance of survival.

By installing the defibrillators in patrol cars and police stations, there will be a good chance that one of the life saving machines will already be nearby if someone collapses in the community.

Police officers will be trained in using the machines and will work alongside the ambulance service in getting to patients quickly.

The defibrillators can instantly detect a heartbeat when placed on the victim’s chest. If one is not found they send a shock to re-start the heart.

For every minute a defibrillator is not used, the chances of survival decrease by 10 per cent.

Heart disease currently kills 135,000 people in Britain every year. The British Heart Foundation says that someone suffers a heart attack every two minutes.

Journal editor Alan Osborn said: “This is a vital campaign as these machines are lifesavers.

“If every reader could just spare £1 we would make it.”

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