BUSINESSES in Allendale have pledged £1,400 for new defibrillators for the centre of the village after the death of a 93-year-old man.

Police and the ambulance service confirmed that emergency services were contacted on Friday, August 16 after a man collapsed. First responders were directed to a defibrillator at the Kings Head pub on the Market Place, but it was allegedly faulty and the man was pronounced dead at the scene.

In response to the tragedy, villagers organised a community meeting at the pub on Thursday to discuss the purchase of a replacement device. At the meeting, it was stressed that it would be important to appoint a guardian to properly maintain the equipment to avoid a repeat of the incident.

READ MORE: Questions over defibrillator maintenance after man dies

Speaking at the meeting, local businessman Charlie Halliday said: “There is no point blaming people after the fact, but the fact is we have a major problem. It could have been anyone, it could have happened to my grandchildren, or any of your children.

“As we speak, there is not a defibrillator in the Allendale area. There are three showing up online, but all of them are down today – that is the problem we have got.

“There are a lot of rumours and stories going round and everybody is blaming everyone – we don’t need to go down that road, the channel we need to go down is to sort something out.”

It was agreed that the defibrillator should be moved to the nearby Forge art studio, while various locals pledged cash to pay for a new device. It was also agreed that a formal monitoring system with a paper trail be brought in to ensure the equipment remains in full working order.

The Forge’s director, Zoe MacLean, said: “We’re very happy to house it and take responsibility for it. The cost is irrelevant – we just need to get one bought.

“It needs to be checked regularly, but I’m pretty sure we could have the money by tomorrow afternoon.”

The various business owners and villagers present at the meeting pledged a total of £1,400 on the night. It was felt around £2,000 would be needed to purchase and install a defibrillator.

According to the British Heart Foundation, defibrillators should have a designated “defib guardian” who regularly check the device to ensure it is ready for use in an emergency.

Defibrillators are mapped by a system known as the Circuit, which can help ambulance services direct a bystander to the nearest one.