St. John Rescue Members Celebrate Oxygen Generator

 

St. John Rescue volunteers, with government officials and Rotary Club of St. John members, pose with the group’s new Oxygen Generator, the only one on the island.

Having to rely on St. Thomas businesses to fill oxygen tanks for St. John first responders, from V.I. National Park rangers to Emergency Medical Service officials, might not seem like a big deal; until it’s too late, according to St. John Rescue officials.

Members of the island’s volunteer emergency response organization have long been stressing how dangerous it was to depend on off-island sources of medical oxygen, which had to come from Miami via St. Croix and St. Thomas before reaching St. John.

“In the event of a disaster, the ferry stops running,” said St. John Rescue’s Bob Malacarne. “That would make getting oxygen tanks filled impossible.”

Malacarne’s pleas were taken to heart by Rotary Club of St. John members who agreed to help raise funds for St. John Rescue to purchase a Medical Oxygen Generator.

The group began the fundraising campaign back in March 2011. Since then, Rotary Club of St. John Project Leader John Fuller also managed to attract help from Rotary Clubs in Puerto Rico and West Virginia, as well as The Rotary Foundation, to raise the needed funds to purchase the generator.

Together, Rotary managed to raise a total of $52,750 for the oxygen generator, with another $16,000 coming from St. John Rescue, to complete the purchase.

Recently, officials celebrated the success of the years-long project. Rotarians from the contributing clubs, along with Fuller and Rotary Club of St. John President Joan Bermingham, joined St. John Rescue members and government officials to officially celebrate the new equipment being operable.

About 20 officials filled St. John Rescue’s new headquarters in Estate Lower Pastory for the grand opening of the new oxygen generator on Sunday afternoon, September 8.

“Our fundraising events, like Flavors of St. John, enable St. John Rotary to support community needs like this,” said Fuller. “Generous donations from the community and the support of local organizations like Scotiabank enable us to do this.”

The September 8 Grand Opening for the island’s new medical oxygen generator marked the end of a lengthy process. From March 2011 when Rotary Club of St. John officials launched its fundraising campaign, the generator finally arrived on St. John in March 2013.

“It was much larger than anticipated, but with a borrowed truck from The Westin, St. John Rescue and a Rotarian managed to man-handle it off the pallets and into Rescue Headquarters,” said Fuller. “A forklift would have been really nice to have.”

Before the unit could be used, however, St. John Rescue officials spent several months training and completing the final installations. Finally on May 6 St. John Rescue volunteers filled the first bottles with their new medical oxygen generator — a milestone they celebrated on September 8.

Malacarne posed with Fuller and other Rotarians who helped make the oxygen generator a reality as officials cut a ribbon, officially opening the equipment room housing the generator.

Since filling those first bottles in May, St. John Rescue volunteers have been able to supply V.I. National Park and Department of Health’s EMS with medical oxygen, which is actually a better grade than the organizations were previously using, according to Malacarne.

While St. John Rescue officials would like to fill bottles for residents and visitors, with its small group of volunteers, they don’t have the time, Malacarne explained.

“For now we can only fill bottles for government agencies and we’re working on a memorandum of understanding with Myrah Keating Smith Community Health Center to fill their bottles,” said Malacarne.

Following the ribbon cutting, guests, government officials and St. John Rescue member enjoyed drinks and refreshments at the group’s Estate Pastory headquarters.

St. John Rescue supplies a critical need for the island and relies on donations and volunteers. To find out how to help or donate to the organization, check out www.stjohnrescue.com.