A defibrillator is now in place in the Fredonia Opera House/Village Hall building, and Fredonia Fire Department officials proudly showed it off this week.

The device, intended for heart attack victims, offers visual and verbal directions on its use. It was installed last fall. Opera House and Village Hall staff will get trained in its use, during a CPR-AED course.

The fire department’s Julius Leone said the defibrillator cost about $2,500 and was acquired in a joint effort between paid and volunteer staff. A $10,000 “Heart Safe” grant from Northern Chautauqua Community Foundation paid for the device, along with other training equipment for the firefighters.

“On behalf of the village, I want to thank the career and volunteer staff for providing this to Village Hall staff, and the public,” Essek said. “The whole community can benefit from this in case of emergency.”

OBSERVER Photos by M.J. Stafford The Fredonia Opera House and Village Hall now have a defibrillator, purchased by the Fredonia Fire Department. Posing with the device Wednesday in the Opera House lobby are, front row, left to right: Assistant Chief Charles Ortolano, Dan Aldrich, Mayor Douglas Essek and Opera House head Rick Davis; back row, left to right, Assistant Chief Ken Haas, Julius Leone, Chief Joshua Myers, Tyler Cloos and Assistant Chief Kurt Maytum.

Fredonia’s new fire chief, Joshua Myers, was impressed by the effort to get the defibrillator, which happened before he started in April. “It’s things like this that make this community a great place to live,” he said.

“We have had medical emergencies in the past. The response time has always been so fast,” said Rick Davis, Fredonia Opera House director. “But for instances where seconds matter, this is absolutely a life-saving benefit.”