A group Broch lifesavers have received Platinum Jubilee medals

A group of Broch volunteers who give up their time have all received medals for their service.

Broch emergency volunteers received their Platinum Jubilee medals

Platinum Jubilee Medals are presented to all front line emergency workers and volunteers who have been active over the last five years.

Broch Community First Responders are volunteers who support the Scottish Ambulance Service by attending 999 calls when there is no ambulance immediately available to attend the scene of an emergency, primarily cardiac arrests, with all responders on-duty carrying a lifesaving defibrillator with them.

Their role is to help stabilise the patient and provide the appropriate care until the more highly skilled ambulance crew arrives on scene to take over the treatment.

They are usually based in rural communities where ambulance crews have longer to travel to the patient. Their aim is to reach a potential life-threatening emergency in the first vital minutes before the ambulance crew arrives.

The Broch scheme has been active since 2016 and has, quite remarkably, seen five volunteers progress to joining the service as full time ambulance staff.

Those who received their medals from L to R.

Gordon Dempster; Colleen Ewen - Coordinator; Wilma Pert; John Riddoch; Craig Birse-Johnson; Donnie Harper; Lynne-Maree Duthie; John Ferguson; Douglas Ewen – Coordinator.

Donald Montgomery, the SAS full time facilitator, presented the medals.

The Broch scheme is a registered charity and always looking for donations. This year they are looking to upgrade their defibrillators at a cost of approx £2000 each.