August 27, 2014 2.21 pm This story is over 115 months old

In pictures: East Midlands Ambulance Service open day in Lincoln

Saving lives: East Midlands Ambulance Service held an open day in Lincoln in an effort to educate people about the importance of the service.

The East Midlands Ambulance Service held an open day at The Showroom on Tritton Road on Wednesday morning in an effort to educate people about the importance of the service.

Live demonstrations, showcase vehicles and face painting were some of the activities that took place in a busy day at The Showroom. The Heritage Society also took part in the day showing off an ambulance of the past that had been restored.

External Relations and Engagement Manager Annie Palmer was the main organiser of the event. She said: “Today is a celebration of everything that is East Midlands Ambulance Service.

“We have a specialist team called our HART (Hazardous Area Response Team) team who respond in extreme circumstances and we also have one of our brand new vehicles which is a 4×4 which can deal with snow issues.”

The ambulance service was supported today by Lincolnshire Police, the Air Ambulance and also LIVES (Lincolnshire Integrated Voluntary Emergency Service) which are the community first responders.

“We have a demonstration with someone with a suspected heart attack; LIVES is called first then our paramedics come in next. Then we are demonstrating our new bit of equipment which is very exciting called a ‘LUCAS device’ which is an automated CPR device that does the chest compressions for you.”

The event was aimed at young children, many who had fun playing in the back of ambulances and getting their face painted. Annie Palmer wanted children to understand that the ambulance service wasn’t a scary place but was helpful and welcoming.

“For the young children its good for them to see the back of an ambulance, for many it can be quite a scary experience if you ever encounter us through a 999 call. We want to prove that our paramedics aren’t scary and our vehicles are quite inviting.”