LIFE-SAVING heart attack kits could soon be in place in Downton to allow a quicker response in an emergency.

The parish council hopes to buy two automatic external defibrillators (AEDs) to be placed at either end of the village.

The machines would be kept in secure, weatherproof, heated cabinets on the side of buildings and can be accessed using a code given out when calling 999 and requesting an ambulance.

The AED will then take the person through what they need to do, and will only shock the patient if it senses there is a shockable heart rhythm.

“The plan is just in the early stages at the moment,” said parish council chairman Chris Hall. “The idea is we get the defibrillators and if we have an emergency, all the instructions are there and they are fail safe.”

Cllr Hall said the council is looking into funding the equipment and will be making contact with parish councils in Landford and Winterslow, where plans to install the defibrillators are further along.

In Landford, it was decided to form a First Responders team after a survey carried out in the village – which has a large elderly population – revealed it is something residents want.

The kits, which cost £1,500 and include a defibrillator and oxygen cylinder, were bought using a community area grant by Wiltshire Council, given out through the Southern Wiltshire Area Board.

Co-ordinator Claire Parker said: “Where we are situated, it is 20 minutes to the hospitals at Southampton and Salisbury – ambulances could be all over the place and it can take quite a long time for one to get here.

“The first few minutes can save a life. If we can be there and give a little bit of help and oxygen or resuscitate someone with the defibrillator, we could hopefully offer a very, very good service.”

Julia Doel, Great Western Ambulance Service’s community response manager for Wiltshire, said: “For patients suffering life-threatening conditions such as heart attacks, it is essential they receive life-saving care in those crucial first few minutes.

“Defibrillators play a vital part in that and we commend the council for their forward thinking in looking to provide the equipment in their village.

“Downton residents and visitors can be sure they have the best chance of surviving a serious clinical emergency while the ambulance is en route.”