TEN of the 61 villages in the second district of Zamboanga City received on Saturday, July 18, 2026, an Automated External Defibrillator (AED) for their use in emergency cases, particularly sudden cardiac arrest.
The distribution of the AED was made possible by Councilor Rolando Navarro Jr. in partnership with Rotary International, particularly the Rotary Club of Makati.
The AED is a user-friendly life-saving portable medical device used to analyze the heart's rhythm and deliver an electrical shock during sudden cardiac arrest.
Navarro said the AED can be utilized at the barangay level cardiac arrest patient before rushing them to the nearest hospital for treatment.
"I am looking forward to provide an AED to each of the 61 villages in the second district and later on may be in the first district of this city," Navarro said in an interview.
He said the 10 units of AED distributed Saturday, July 18, is part of the P10 million of the Rotary Club of Makati for Zamboanga City's second district. Each unit costs at least P200,000.
Among the recipients of the AED is the island village of Tigtabon located south of mainland Zamboanga City with a population of around 6,800.
Meanwhile, Hadji Attang Mohammad Nur, Tigtabon chairperson, the AED is of big helped to them being an island village.
He said the AED given them will better equipped their village health workers in serving their constituents.
Navarro lauded the Rotary Club of Makati for the donation of the AED on Saturday to the 10 villages of Zamboanga City. (SunStar Zamboanga)