ANYONE suffering a heart attack in Stamford Bridge now has a much better chance of survival, following the launch of a community defibrillator scheme.

Until recently, victims would face a ten to 15-minute wait for treatment until ambulancemen had got to them from Pocklington or York. And the delay could prove critical to their chances of recovery.

But now a team of volunteers is on standby day and night, ready to rush out and defibrillate patients - attempting to restart the heart with a series of electric shocks - until the ambulance crew has arrived.

The scheme, launched by local councillors Hilary Saynor and John Cox, already has more than a dozen volunteers who man a 24-hour rota.

More joined the scheme by attending an all-day training session at the weekend, and Coun Saynor appealed for further villagers to come forward. She said the more volunteers there were involved in the project, the less onerous was the time commitment for each individual.

Each volunteer took the £3,000 defibrillator equipment and a mobile phone with them when they were on call, along with a yellow jacket. As soon as anyone from the village dialled 999 and requested an ambulance because of a suspected heart attack, operators ordered an ambulance and also called the mobile phone.

Coun Saynor said volunteers should be able to get to a patient anywhere in the village within five minutes of being called, quicker than any ambulance could manage. She said volunteers, who have to undergo re-training every three to six months, had been called out twice already to collapses. Neither had turned out to be a heart attack. She said the way villagers had responded to the request for volunteers was typical of Stamford Bridge. "We are a very public-spirited village."

- Anyone from Stamford Bridge interested in volunteering should call Coun Saynor on 01759 371429.

Updated: 12:02 Tuesday, February 12, 2002