Preston Parkrun cancelled after life-saving defibrillator is damaged in Storm Ciara flooding

Avenham and Miller Parks were heavily affected by Storm Ciara on Sunday (February 9), with the River Ribble bursting its banks and flooding swathes of parkland.

A huge clear-up operation has been underway this week, with volunteers and council staff working together to get the park back up and running.

But running will not be a feature at the park this weekend, after organisers confirmed that the popular 5km Parkrun will not go ahead on Saturday (February 15).

The event has been cancelled due to a damaged defibrillator, situated on the outside of a toilet block, in Avenham Park.

Access to the life-saving equipment, which is used to re-start the heart during cardiac arrest, is a compulsory requirement for all Parkrun events.

Without it, the event cannot go ahead.

A spokesman for Preston Parkrun said: "Unfortunately, the defibrillator was a victim of the recent flooding and is out of action at the moment.

"It is a Parkrun requirement that all events have access to a (working) defibrillator.

"We are currently working on options for a replacement and we'll be speaking to the park management early next week.

"We hope to be back up and 'running' next weekend."

A spokesman for Preston City Council said: "We are in contact with the defibrillator suppliers about the extent of the damage caused by the flood.

"If a replacement unit is required, one would be provided to us on loan in the interim.

"The cost to replace is in the region of £1,000."

The council has also taken the decision to cancel events due to take place in city parks this weekend as further severe weather is forecast with the arrival of Storm Dennis.

Councillor Robert Boswell, cabinet member for environment and community safety, said "safety is our number one priority".

"I’d firstly like to thank council staff, volunteers and the emergency services for all their efforts in dealing with Storm Ciara last weekend and into this week with the clear up operation", said the councillor.

"As you can imagine, the rain and flooding from the river has had a huge impact on our parks and some areas remain under water and play areas cordoned off for safety.

"Looking ahead to Storm Dennis, we have taken the decision to call off football matches on our pitches and cancel all events due to take place in parks for the rest of this week (Health walks, Run Preston etc).

"The Heartbeat installation at Preston Market remains open as advertised unless the weather causes any damage to it, in which case it will be closed for safety reasons.

"We hope everyone understands the reason behind these decisions and that safety is our number one priority."