RESIDENTS in Blagdon may soon have the power to save another person s life.

RESIDENTS in Blagdon may soon have the power to save another person's life.

A portable defibrillator is due to be installed in the village so that if anyone suffers a heart attack they can be treated straight away.

Anyone who dials 999 when someone collapses will be directed to the nearest unit, which administers an electric shock to restart the heart.

Similar machines, bought by estate agent Clive Setter, have already been installed in other villages in the Chew Valley.

Mr Setter, of Setter and Lee estate agents in Chew Magna, has paid £1,000 for each defibrillator.

Mr Setter said: "I decided to buy these machines after talking to my sister Trudy, who does a lot of work with heart charities.

"She told me that when someone has a heart attack, the heart needs to be restarted within eight minutes for them to survive.

"These machines are commonplace in other countries and in cities, but not in the countryside where it takes longer for ambulances to arrive.

"Areas such as the Chew Valley tend to be in between ambulance stations, which means the vehicles could come from Bath, Paulton or Weston, which are all reasonably far away.

"We are hoping to get a machine installed in Blagdon by January next year. We haven't decided on a specific location yet though.