A man thought to be in his 60s and suffering a cardiac arrest at the King’s Head Hotel in Ross-on-Wye was the first person to benefit from the recently installed defibrillator in the Market Place.

The ambulance service was called just after 8.30pm on Wednesday, January 6th and the defibrillator was used on the patient. He then received further treatment from paramedics before he was transferred to Hereford Hospital.

The local residents who organised the installation of a defibrillator in the Market Place were angry and distressed when they thought that it has been stolen.

A Ross Gazette reporter noticed that the door of the box, which is on the wall of the Market House, was hanging open at 8.50am on Thursday, January 7th. Councillor Craig Morgan confirmed that the box had been opened and the defibrillation equipment was missing.

A number of enquiries were made to the ambulance service and they confirmed that it was used for a medical emergency on Wednesday, January 6th and is currently being checked before being replaced as soon as possible.