(WBBM NEWSRADIO) -- The Evanston Fire Department received a generous life-saving donation this week.
Three ambulances will now be equipped with portable chest compression systems, known as LUCAS devices.
“It's a device that we put on a person's chest and it gives continuous, precise compressions rather than a person doing CPR,” said Evanston Fire Chief Paul Polep.
The department received the donation from the Evanston First Responders Foundation (EFRF), in honor of 19-year-old Oliver Brown Leopold.
The late teen was an Evanston Fire Explorer who passed away in 2021.
His parents, Alexander and Mary, made a roughly $56,000 donation in Oliver's name to purchase three LUCAS devices.
“I think these devices, saving folks’ lives, it's just a perfect fit for what Oliver was all about,” Chief Polep said.
Not only will the LUCAS devices provide precise chest compressions, Chief Polep says they will free up first responders to focus on other medical needs during emergency calls.
“I really do believe it's going to change the way we operate on cardiac arrest patients,” he said.
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