Family thank special constable for lifesaving effort

The family of a man who fell seriously ill in Chatham paid a surprise visit to the special constable who helped to save his life.

Peter O’Donnell, 68, suffered a cardiac arrest whilst visiting his sister Annie and niece Shannon on Friday 23 August 2024.

Shannon immediately performed CPR on her uncle until Special Constable Laura Meeks and paramedic Emily Brown from the Joint Response Unit arrived within minutes to take over. Further ambulance crews also attended along with the air ambulance.

Peter eventually regained consciousness with the help of a defibrillator and is now recovering in hospital.

His family visited SC Meeks at a recent training session for special constables to present her with some flowers and thank her for helping to save Peter’s life.

Overwhelmed

Annie said:

‘We just felt so overwhelmed by what she did for us all. For such a young woman she was so calm, focussed and reassuring, and the speed and professionalism demonstrated by her and the paramedics was just amazing. ‘She is a real credit to Kent Police, the Special Constabulary and the Joint Response Unit in particular. Along with my daughter they helped to save my brother’s life and it is difficult to put into words what it means to us as a family.’

Shannon added:

‘We are deeply thankful for the care my uncle received on the night and the care he continues to receive in hospital, and we are hopeful he will make a full recovery. ‘I learned CPR in school but it’s something you never expect to have to do, especially not on your own relative. But I would like to use this experience for good by stressing the importance of recognising the signs of someone going into cardiac arrest and taking immediate action – knowing how to perform CPR and having confidence in yourself to do it when you need to. ‘Also take the time to learn where the nearest defibrillator is located because every second counts and these are simple steps that can help to save someone’s life.’

Volunteer

SC Meeks joined the Kent Special Constabulary in August 2023 and qualified in February 2024 after completing her training. She currently volunteers four or five times a week for the force whilst also working as a call handler for an energy company.

The Joint Response Unit is a Kent Police and South East Coast Ambulance Service partnership that sees special constables and paramedics responding to emergencies together in the same vehicles and responding to particular incidents that are likely to benefit from the skills of both services.

SC Meeks said:

‘It was a really lovely surprise for Peter’s family to come and see me. I had no idea and it was very emotional, although I am just really glad that I was able to help and they were able to celebrate his birthday with him in hospital. ‘I absolutely love being a special and the family vibe we have. I get a lot of satisfaction from volunteering with the police and it is always nice to be recognised when you have done a good job.’

Special constables take part in frontline police work and in Kent they have opportunities to specialise that are not available in any other police force. They wear the same uniform, carry the same equipment and hold the same power of arrest as regular officers.

Kent Special Constabulary was the first in the UK to receive the highest award in volunteering, The Queen’s Award for Voluntary Service.

Visit the Kent Police webpage if you are interested in applying to join.