My Christmas gift to Photo Challenge enthusiasts last Sunday was posting an easy image.
Eric Bosch’s shot showed 4 empty chairs, in a row on the ground. (Click here to see.)
As readers quickly interrupted their holiday meals to note, they’re by the Saugatuck River at Riverside Park (near the Riverside Avenue/Saugatuck Avenue split).
They were there before the spot was renovated. They’re there still, providing new and old visitors alike with a calming view up and down the waterway.
Congratulations, and a time of Santa’s hat to Mark Soboslai, Mark Mathias, Cathy Walsh, Andrew Colabella, Ralph Balducci, Susan Katz, Johanna Keyser Rossi, Peggy O’Halloran, Bill Christiaanse, Linda Vita Velez and Joelle Malec, for nailing last week’s challenge.
This week’s photo shows (obviously) an AED. There are dozens of the life-saving devices, in schools and public places around town.
The question is: Where — based on the skimpy cropping on the sides — would you find this particular one?
A second question is: Why on earth would there be a lock on it, with a sign saying “Call 911 for Code”? In a situation where every second counts, fumbling for your phone, making that call, waiting for a dispatcher and then waiting longer for a code before unlocking the combination — could be the difference between life and death.
If there was a concern about theft: I can’t imagine someone stealing an AED.
And if they would: Well, karma’s a bitch.
Thank goodness someone had the smarts to open this lock before it’s needed.
(Photo/Dinkin Fotografix)
Compo Marina
Ned Dimes Marina.
Yup Dimes Marina mounted on the Westport PD Marine unit office.
The locks are on them so that they don’t get vandalized. The code is pretty easy but I’m not telling. That one should get brought inside. They don’t do well in cold weather unless they are in a heated case.
Thanks, Jack.
The AED shows is indeed at the Ned Dimes Marina. It’s one of many in public spots around town.
I’ve never seen one of the unlocked ones — and they’re at every athletic field — be vandalized.
Please post the code. Can you imagine if you or a loved one need help, and the first person on the scene has left their cell phone in their car, or boat? They yell for someone else. That person runs over — leaving their cell phone on the ground. Those seconds could mean the difference between life and death.
Plus, the WiFi at the beach sucks.
My daughter wanted to go ice skating today so after I wrote this I checked the ones at Compo and Longshore. The one in the picture and at Longshore ice rink have dead batteries. The one at the South Beach bathrooms is working. They don’t need much maintenance but they do need to be brought in during cold weather. The gel on the pads will freeze and the boards/chips won’t work. When they were set up the lock code was…. 9-1-1.
Re: last week’s Photo Challenge, the 4 four chairs in Riverside Park are down to one – at least one visible. It was extremely foggy when I visited yesterday so perhaps the other three were obscured (ha). But aside from that, I compliment the agencies involved in the restoration. The landscape is so beautiful and natural — a pleasure to walk through in any type of weather!
Ned dimes Marina
Outside Chip’s ’73 house in Maine
Ned’s marina, but it doesn’t look like it’s in a weather resistant case for the cold.
I think there is a fear of vandalism and theft of these AEDs I have seen people damage them and steal them in public places in the past and they aren’t that cheap!
Thanks, Jack. From your previous comment, I should have figured out the code myself 🙂
Perhaps each AED should be wired into the town’s 911 system. When an AED is opened, an immediate 911 call is placed with a dispatch to the site. And with a posted notice of what will happen, thieves might be deterred.