Hockey player's life saved by Chippenham club's defibrillator

Money has been raised for a second defibrillator at a sports club after their first machine saved the life of a visiting hockey player.

Arno Van Oorstehout, from Alecto hockey club in the Netherlands, suffered a cardiac arrest at a game at Chippenham Sports Club in Wiltshire.

Players ran into the club house to retrieve a defibrillator before using it to save his life.

Their appeal for a second defibrillator hit its £2,000 target within 48 hours.

The campaign was launched following concerns that there could be delays in providing lifesaving treatment in the future.

The club's general manager Fiona Wheadon told how the player had "suddenly collapsed".

"The first person got to him thinking that he only passed out, but realised he had no pulse," she said.

"So we realised he had gone into cardiac arrest and very quickly started CPR."

But she voiced concerns about the length of time it took the players to run back to the bar area to retrieve the defibrillator from a locked cabinet, after asking for a code.

"If the new location of a second defibrillator could be right next to the pitch it would mean that it could have been retrieved within thirty seconds, as opposed to three to five minutes," she said.

The money raised was donated by both club members and the wider community.

Speaking to BBC Radio Wiltshire, Mrs Wheadon said she was "humbled" by their efforts.

She said: "Residents from Chippenham as well as all the various sporting sections have contributed which has been great to see."

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