A family in Belfast has made a staggering donation to the city council to help it provide eight new automated external defibrillators (AEDs) across the city.

The family of Mark Murphy have raised £5,408 and want this money to be used to provide AEDs in his memory.

They have asked Belfast City Council to install one of the new devices at Cherryvale Playing Fields, which is close to their family home and used by many of those who have supported their fundraising efforts, Belfast Live reported.

A report has been submitted to the council, which recommends that it accepts the donation from the Murphy family.

“The family have also indicated that they have no strong feelings over the locations of the other defibrillators but they would be delighted if they could be geographically spread over the city,” it states.

This donation will enable the council to extend its AED pilot programme. In the first phase, six of the lifesaving devices were installed in parks around Belfast in 2016. Phase two will see nine more AEDs located throughout the city.

With the additional money, a third phase can now go ahead, providing more defibrillators that could help save lives in the event of sudden cardiac arrest.

In February, Belfast Live reported on research from the British Heart Foundation Northern Ireland (BHF NI), which revealed that one young person in the country dies every month due to an undiagnosed heart condition.

The charity stressed that more research needs to be carried out into what causes these undetected heart conditions, which can lead to sudden deaths.

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