Life-saving radio equipment has been donated to Limerick Suicide Watch (LSW) to help curtail the number of people taking their own lives in the city. Provided by EMR Integrated Solutions, the two-way radios will enable members of LSW to communicate with each other more reliably, intervene more effectively in life-threatening incidents and summon the support of emergency services as required.
The donation includes two-way radio handsets, a charger, base station and antenna and serves a team of over 40 volunteers. The radio frequency is also linked to the Irish Coast Guard, Limerick Marine Search and Rescue and Limerick Fire and Rescue, significantly speeding up reaction times to potentially fatal incidents as they occur.
Commenting on the donation, Ger McNamara, chairman of Limerick Suicide Watch said: “The donation is critical for us. We’re not relying on mobile phones, which really aren’t suitable due to coverage blackspots. Our volunteers now have handsets that are easy-to-use and reliable and they can request assistance from colleagues or emergency services much faster. With a relatively high suicide rate in Limerick, our ability to respond to incidents needs to be professional and this donation allows us to achieve that,” he said.
A typical volunteer shift lasts four hours and consists of foot and bike patrols along the banks of the Shannon. The group is active for three days during the week from 9pm to 1am and at weekends from 12am to 4am.
Mark Quinn, managing director of EMR believes businesses have a responsibility to give back to the community wherever possible. “Our organisation has a strong sense of corporate social responsibility and we support wholeheartedly initiatives such as Limerick Suicide Watch. We admire the courage and bravery of the volunteers who work in extremely difficult conditions and in all weathers and we’re delighted to support them in the valuable work they do.”
LSW hopes to increase its mobile patrols to seven days a week, extending the support it provides to people in difficulty.
