JULY 3 - 7, 2019 604 - 828 Rupert Terrace
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KANDOLA KANDOLA
Cosmopolitan Downtown Living at it’s Finest!
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WEDNESDAY, JUNE 26, 2019
Hazard on the road
Ministry rejects safety changes at Admirals Road intersection Page A7
Spreading good cheer
Mustard Seed Food Bank welcomes donation of 2,700 jars of peanut butter Page A12
Block party
Crowds flock to Fernwood for 24th annual FernFest celebration Page A13
Parking poses challenge for downtown businesses
Derek Sloos, 28, tries out virtual reality CPR and AED training on the front lawns of the British Columbia Parliament Buildings in Victoria on Saturday. (Kevin Menz/News Staff)
Nicole Crescenzi News Staff
CPR training goes high-tech Kevin Menz News Staff
CPR-training mannequins sat scattered on the front lawns of the B.C. Parliament Buildings on Saturday. St. John Ambulance’s British Columbia and Yukon division, alongside AED-manufacturer Zoll, hosted virtual reality CPR and AED — automated external defibrillator — training. The training was open to anyone. “A majority of the people who’ve had [CPR and AED] training may not come across sudden cardiac arrest, so the virtual reality gives you a life-like scenario,” said Drew Binette, St. John’s director of strategic partnership and fund development. The organization is considering bringing virtual reality into its
classrooms. “We’re trying it out to see if this is something we’re going to add to the classroom in the future,” Binette said. Derek Sloos, who was visiting Victoria, was the first to try the training Saturday. “I was nervous, and it was just virtual reality,” the 28-year-old, who’s yet to receive formal CPR and AED training, said. “I can’t imagine a real situation.” He didn’t realize how hard he needs to push during chest compressions. “It was intimidating constantly having to push harder because you feel like you’re going to hurt the individual,” Sloos said. Binette compared the virtual reality training to a game. “We’ve kind of made it fun,” he
said. The exercise, which plays out of an app from Zoll, can be used by anyone with virtual reality goggles, including the cardboard models, Binette said. The app will provide the trainee with a percentage score after the virtual reality exercise. The score measures whether or not the trainee is performing compressions at the right speed and with the right depth. Sloos scored a 38 per cent, which sits roughly in the middle of scores Binette has seen for first time users with no CPR or AED training. “I’ve seen anywhere from 10 per cent to 50 per cent, so we have a lot of training to do,” Binette said. Don’t expect to score 100 per cent with limited practice, of course. Binette, who was a paramedic for 12 years, said he scored an 88 per cent.
Downtown businesses have seen significant changes to local infrastructure in recent years, some of which have caused negative impacts to their shops. In a new report put out by the Downtown Victoria Business Association, 400 surveyed respondents named parking availability and cost of parking to be two of the top four factors that negatively impact the vitality of their businesses. The other two factors are safety and the public perception of a clean downtown. In the survey 78.8 per cent of respondents ranked parking availability as one of the top four factors. One of the largest contributors to a change in parking availability is the construction of developments in the downtown core, with over 15 condominium projects currently on the go. This is seconded by the Victoria bike lane network; while there are nearly 2,000 onstreet parking spots throughout downtown Victoria, the installation of the Pandora bike lanes saw the loss of 44 parking spots and the Fort Street lanes lost an additional 30. Continued A5
Mark & Jessica Salter www.thesaltergroup.ca
5 Bed | 6 Bath | 5734 SqFt
250.361.1939 301 Denison Rd - Oak Bay - $2,998,000
MLS 412215
This landmark 1939 Art Moderne home has been completely modernized, while maintaining its character and original beauty. Panoramic views and privacy.