FORT WAYNE, Ind. (WOWO) — The Fort Wayne Zoo is getting additional emergency equipment to help respond to cardiac emergencies.
The Three Rivers Ambulance Authority has donated 5 automated external defibrillators, or AEDs, to the zoo.
The devices will be placed at locations throughout the zoo for use by guests, staff and volunteers during a medical emergency. The new AEDs will also be registered with the National Emergency AED and Resource Registry, known as NEAR.
NEAR allows publicly accessible AEDs to be registered and displayed on a map through a mobile app, helping people locate nearby equipment during a cardiac emergency. The AED locations are also integrated into TRAA’s computer-aided dispatch system.
That connection can help 911 telecommunicators and first responders identify nearby AEDs when responding to a cardiac emergency.
Fort Wayne Zoo Executive Director Rick Schuiteman said the donation will expand access to lifesaving equipment across the zoo’s campus.
“TRAA is making a meaningful investment in the thousands of families who visit the zoo each year,” Schuiteman said.
TRAA says sudden cardiac arrest can happen without warning and that early CPR and rapid use of an AED are important parts of responding to a cardiac emergency.
The agency is also encouraging businesses and community members with publicly accessible AEDs to register their devices with NEAR.
More information about registering an AED is available through Three Rivers Ambulance Authority.
