Riverview Police Chief Ronald Beggs (left) accepts a donation of LifeVac devices from Kiwanis Club of Riverview President Diane Kinlen while Mayor Andrew Swift also presents LifeVac devices to Fire Chief Ron Lammers during the Sept. 7 council meeting.
By ZEINAB NAJM
Sunday Times Newspapers
RIVERVIEW — The Kiwanis Club of Riverview held a Facebook fundraiser where they were able to collect funds for 12 LifeVac devices donated to police, fire and city buildings.
Mayor Andrew Swift and Kiwanis Club of Riverview President Diane Kinlen made the presentation to Fire Chief Ron Lammers and Police Chief Ronald Beggs during a Sept. 7 city council meeting.
“We had discussions on what we wanted to do for the city,” Swift said. “We all decided we wanted to do something special for the city. I found out that we do not already have these devices.”
Initially, 10 devices were going to be donated, but since the fundraiser raised more money than anticipated, additional devices were purchased. Total value of the 12 devices is $675.
Both ambulances and the three police patrol vehicles will have a LifeVac device with the remaining distributed to city buildings.
“Hopefully you never have to use these,” Swift said. “They are a one-use device. We have a contract with the company. If the devices are used to save a life (the company) will replace it for free.”
The LifeVac device is a non-powered, non-invasive, single-use only airway clearance device developed for resuscitating a person with an airway obstruction when current choking protocols have been followed without success.
Since 2015 over 5,000 people per year have choked to death in the United States, the meeting agenda said. Choking is a leading cause of death in children and in those over 65 years of age.
A majority of these deaths are caused by food, according to the agenda.
(Zeinab Najm can be reached at [email protected].)