A new public defibrillator has been installed on Loch Lomondside after a donation by the Friends of Loch Lomond and The Trossachs.
The independent conservation and heritage charity for the national park area part-funded a unit for Ardlui.
The device will be situated in the village as part of a project led by Arrochar, Tarbet and Ardlui Community Council.
The charity contributes £800 towards the cost as a result of funds raised by businesses such as Cruise Loch Lomond and Fascadail Guest House taking part in the Friends of OUR park visitor giving scheme.
A £200 donation has also been made towards covering the cost of improving the plinth access area next to the war memorial in Arrochar, another project led by the community council.
Cheques towards both projects were presented at an awards ceremony in the Three Villages Hall which was attended by local businesses participating in the Friends of OUR park scheme.
James Fraser, chairman of Friends of Loch Lomond and The Trossachs, said: “Ensuring the safety of the 4m annual visitors to the national park and local residents is important and the availability of defibrillators in remoter parts of the park, which are some distance away from the nearest hospital, has been a high priority for the Friends working with local groups and businesses.
“Last month the Trossachs Search and Rescue Group, who have been at the forefront of this initiative, installed the 100th defibrillator at Inchmurrin Hotel on Inchmurrin Island. While this was an important milestone, we cannot afford to rest on our laurels where safety is concerned and the more defibrillators we have, the better.
‘’We are also pleased to be able to make a contribution towards the war memorial access project and are very grateful to all businesses and their patrons who helped to make this funding possible.”
Community council secretary Mary Haggarty said: “These are welcome investments in important projects in our lochside communities.
“Due to the remoteness of the area, response times to emergency calls may be longer than in other parts of the national park and there is evidence from elsewhere that the availability of defibrillators locally helps save lives.”
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