Will you get hearts beating this Valentine’s Day? Paramedics call on Londoners to save a life as figures reveal almost 40 people’s hearts could stop on this day for romance

Senior paramedics are calling on Londoners to be ready to give the gift of life to the people they love this Valentine’s Day by learning resuscitation skills and how to use a defibrillator.

New figures from London Ambulance Service reveal that paramedics in the capital attended 1,089 cardiac arrests in February last year – an average of nearly 40 cardiac arrests a day.

A cardiac arrest is a life-threatening emergency where the heart stops pumping blood around the body and without fast intervention from bystanders the person will die.

More than 12,000 people are expected to suffer a cardiac arrest in London this year.

Mark Faulkner, Consultant Paramedic at London Ambulance Service, said:

“It’s not pleasant to think about – particularly on Valentine’s Day, but the majority of cardiac arrests happen at home. This means that – should the worst happen – you may need to perform CPR on someone you love.

“Keep your loved one’s heart beating by learning these quick and easy skills. By intervening early you’ll more than double the chance of survival.

“And if you’re looking for an extra gift – as well as signing up to be a London Lifesaver, why not make a date with that special someone for the London Ambulance Charity’s Big Stadium Abseil? The abseil is certainly set to get hearts racing and raises funds for a great cause.

“Money raised will go towards resuscitation training and installing defibrillators in neighbourhoods to help bystanders intervene quickly to save a life.”

The London Ambulance Service Charity is working to train a generation of school children in life-saving resuscitation skills, fund more defibrillators that are local to where Londoners live, where there is little access to one of these life-saving devices, and improve cardiac arrest survival rates.

Since September 2021, the Service’s London Lifesavers campaign has trained over 47,000 Londoners as part of its aim to make the capital a city of lifesavers.

The London Ambulance Charity’s Heart Starters campaign is also installing an additional 200 defibrillators in the 150 neighbourhoods in London where there is no or little access to one of these life-saving devices.

If you are interested in supporting London Ambulance Charity’s vital work by taking on the adrenaline-fuelled Big Stadium Abseil, please register for the event here.

You can also help us to help people in the capital by becoming a London Lifesaver.