The club recently signed up to Project Defib, a national Red Cross College campaign offering all Australian sporting associations access to a subsidised defibrillator.

“We are all about being a thriving place where people of all ages and abilities come to discover the joy of sailing,” AWYC Commodore Jeff Stirling said.

“The safety of our members and everyone involved with the club is at the core of everything we stand for.

“We were astounded at the sudden cardiac arrest statistics and decided very quickly that having the defib available was an insurance policy to help counteract the potential risk.”

Club members have been trained to use the device by the Red Cross and Mr Stirling thanked Wodonga Apex Club for donating the machine.

“We have already received excellent training, we just hope we never have to use it,” he said.

Red Cross statistics revealed 33,000 Australians suffered from a sudden cardiac arrest every year, of which only 5 per cent survived.

Research proved the alarming survival rate could be dramatically improved if a defibrillator was applied within minutes of an arrest.