A woman who died suddenly after a cardiac arrest at the age of just 31 could now save countless lives after raising the money to install a defibrillator at a pub in Manchester city centre.
Emma Horrell was tragically found by her fiancé Bob at their home in Whitefield earlier this year after suffering the fatal episode whilst working from home. The mental health doctor had been diagnosed Cardiomyopathy in 2017 after her mum died from a similar heart problem several years ago.
That didn't stop her from training with her running group - Manchester Road Runners, who meet at the Wharf in Castlefield for a pint after each run. A big advocate for the heart charity Cardiac Risk in the Young (CRY), she decided to start raising funds for a defibrillator outside the pub.
READ MORE: Woman found 'lying on pavement' seriously hurt in hit-and-run
She and running friend, Laura Burke, 31, got to work with their fundraising, but shortly after they began the coronavirus pandemic struck. They had just started meeting up again and organising more charity events in January this year when the tragedy struck.
Emma's sudden death left her family, friends and running team mates reeling. But Laura says the heartbreak spurred them on to finish the fundraiser and get the defibrillator installed - in the hope that it could save other lives in the future. They have now nearly doubled their target and plan to launch the device this weekend.
Speaking to the Manchester Evening News , Laura said: "She was only 31 and was due to get married to her fiancé Bob this July. She was just so full of life and made the most of every day. She had just finished her PHD as well. It really hit us."
Emma was a fitness fanatic and had ran many races in Manchester, as well as finishing a triathlon along with Laura in 2019. She was a great advocate for CRY following the death of her mum, and campaigned for more awareness of heart conditions affecting young people.
"She lost her mum a few years before to a heart problem and they found that Emma had a similar problem," Laura said. "She carried on running and was working on her PHD. We actually did a triathlon together as well. She was amazing and a happy and outgoing person.
"Emma was a huge advocate for the charity CRY so we decided to raise some money to get a defibrillator outside the Wharf for pub users as well as local residents and boats as there was nothing like that in the area. Then as covid hit we had to shut the whole thing down."
As restrictions were lifted, Laura and Emma began planning ways they could resume the fundraiser, and planned a Christmas quiz as well as launching a gofundme page. They needed to raise between £1,500 and £2,000 for the defibrillator and a case so the device could be installed outside the pub.
But following Emma's death, donations flooded in from friends, family and strangers who had been touched by news of her campaign work. The running group has now raised over £3,000 - meaning they can buy a higher quality defibrillator and create a plaque in Emma's memory.
"After Emma's death we knew we really needed to finish the fundraiser for the defibrillator and after her death we received so many donations. People were just throwing money at us," Laura said.
"We’ve absolutely smashed our target and raised £3,000 which meant we could get a slightly better quality machine and create a plaque in Emma’s memory. We are donating the rest of the money to CRY."
The cabinet has already been installed outside the Wharf with a launch event for the device happening this Saturday (May 7). Laura is inviting anyone who would like to raise a glass to Emma, or find out more about the defibrillator to come down to the pub from 12.30pm.
