GEORGE TOWN: What is usually seen as just another fixture on the wall at Lebuh Cecil Market proved its worth when it was used to revive a tourist who collapsed suddenly among the crowds.
Since its installation in early 2024, the automated external defibrillator (AED) at the market – popular for its wide variety of Penang food – has been used three times to rescue victims of sudden cardiac arrest (SCA).
The latest was 64-year-old Indonesian tourist Tumin, who collapsed while moving through the crowd in December last year.
Passers-by Koay Hean Wei and Ong Cheong Pin rushed to check on him and began cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR), while others retrieved the AED – a device that analyses heart rhythm and delivers an electric shock if needed to restore it.
Tumin’s pulse soon returned.
The incident prompted Zoll Medical Corporation to donate a new unit under its Heroes for Life initiative, in which the company provides an AED each time one is used to save a life.
The device was handed over to St John Ambulance Malaysia on Thursday to support ongoing emergency response efforts.
At the ceremony, Tumin – accompanied by his wife Ernalisa and son Windy Wijaya – reunited with his rescuers.
They shook hands and embraced in a brief but emotional meeting, marked by quiet gratitude and light conversation.
Penang health committee chairman Daniel Gooi Zi Sen said the incident showed the importance of early intervention.
“In these critical moments, it is not a doctor or paramedic who responds first, but people around the victims. Through swift action and the immediate use of CPR and an AED, lives are saved.”
He added that Penang recorded the highest SCA survival rate in the country at about 8%, compared with the national average of 1%.
As of December 2025, the state has installed 277 AED units, with plans to add another 71 this year.
Datuk Seri Dr Yee Thiam Sun, state commander of St John Ambulance Malaysia (Penang), welcomed the donation, saying it would strengthen community preparedness and response by providing essential resources.
