FAIRFIELD — Law enforcement agencies across Butler County received a major boost in life saving equipment Wednesday as Project Heart ReStart donated 90 Automatic External Defibrillators (AEDs) valued at $175,500. The donation, part of Phase Six of the ongoing community initiative, was announced at a ceremony held at 10 a.m. at the Fairfield Community Arts Center, 411 Wessel Drive. Speakers included Steve King, chair of the Project Heart ReStart Committee, and Chief Pat Carr, president of the Butler County Chiefs of Police Association. The gift was made possible through a partnership that includes The Christ Hospital Health Network, Mercy Health, UC Health, TriHealth, Premier Health, the Medical Staff of Mercy Fairfield, Kettering Health, Cintas, Zoll Medical, and the Rotary Clubs of Cincinnati, Fairfield, Oxford, and Middletown. Project Heart ReStart launched in 2023 in the wake of Buffalo Bills safety Damar Hamlin’s high-profile cardiac arrest during a game in Cincinnati. The effort focuses on equipping first-responder vehicles with AEDs so defibrillation can begin as quickly as possible when someone suffers sudden cardiac arrest. In its first phase, the committee worked with the Rotary Club of Cincinnati, Zoll, Cintas, Hamilton County Commissioners, Cincinnati hospital systems, and community donors to raise $260,000 and place 130 AEDs in every Hamilton County Sheriff’s Office cruiser.

Across six phases, Project Heart ReStart has now raised more than $1 million and distributed nearly 634 AEDs. The devices are in service in Hamilton, Butler, and Clermont counties in Ohio; Boone, Kenton, Campbell, Pendleton, Grant, Mason, Robertson, and Gallatin counties in Kentucky; and Ripley and Franklin counties in Indiana. Organizers note that having an AED available at the scene of a cardiac emergency can raise the chance of survival from roughly 10 percent to as high as 40 percent. Wednesday’s donation expands that coverage deeper into Butler County, putting additional life-saving tools directly into the hands of local officers who are often the first to arrive when every minute counts.