The Detroit Fire Department is working to train more city employees and residents in hands-only CPR.

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As part of the city’s ongoing effort to make Detroit a “HEARTSafe Community,” the department is teaming up with the Detroit Department of Transportation and various other city departments to train employees and ensure municipal buildings and buses are equipped with automated external defibrillators, or AEDs.

If performed immediately, CPR and AED use can double or triple a person’s chance of survival from an out of hospital cardiac arrest, according to the American Heart Association.

DDOT, under the leadership of Interim Director G. Michael Staley, was one of the first city departments to request its Transportation Equipment Operators (TEOs) be trained in hands-only CPR.

“Having our TEOs trained in hands-only CPR and AED use can literally mean the difference between life and death,” said Staley in a statement. “The response we’ve gotten from our employees is very encouraging. Safety is the number one priority at DDOT, and this training underscores that commitment.”

Last year the city joined the Pulse Point AED app that shows a registry of publicly available AEDs in the area. To join a training course for CPR or to learn more about how to use an AED, visit the city of Detroit website or call 313-596-2959 to submit a request for a training session in your neighborhood.

Other headlines for Friday, Aug. 9, 2024:

• A federal court has dismissed all charges in a lawsuit Hamtramck Public Schools Superintendent Jaleelah Ahmed filed against the teachers union.
• Detroit’s annual Ribs and R&B festival is taking place this weekend, Aug. 9-11, at Hart Plaza.
• The 2024 Woodward Dream Cruise is coming up next Saturday, August 17.

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