MORE life-saving equipment is to be available for West Yorkshire heart attack victims.

The British Heart Foundation launched the National Defibrillator Programme by giving 75 of the devices to the county's ambulance service.

It is part of a new scheme - paid for by £6m of lottery money - that will see nearly 2,300 defibrillators placed in public places across England.

The devices will be in such places as sports stadiums and shopping precincts.

The move will throw lifelines to the tens of thousands of people who have cardiac arrests every year.

The foundation is working closely with the Government's Health Department on the programme.

The scheme also aims to increase the number of people trained in emergency life support.

When someone suffers a cardiac arrest, their chances of survival drop by up to 10% for every minute that passes - so a speedy response is vital.

About 270,000 people in the UK have heart attacks each year. About a third die before reaching hospital.

The cash will also pay for training equipment and the post of a community defibrillation officer in each NHS trust.

He or she will train volunteer life-savers, called community responders, who can be sent to cardiac arrest cases.

Anyone interested in becoming a community responder in West Yorkshire, to help save lives, should phone Paul Stevens at the ambulance service on 01924 582000.