The St John Ambulance will look to develop a designated marine section to help deal with the expected increase in water sports events in the coming years.

The charity’s move comes as Bermuda prepares to host the World Series sailing event in October, which will act as one of a series of preliminary races to the America’s Cup in 2017.

Justin Williams, the incoming chairman of the board of St John Ambulance, told The Royal Gazette that he also plans to renovate the brigade’s headquarters on Point Finger Road, Paget.

He also revealed that the charity’s fleet of ambulances could soon be fitted with GPS units.

Mr Williams said: “In addition to ambulances, bike and foot patrols St John is, with the forthcoming increase in marine sporting events, developing a marine section.

“We already cover events such as the Powerboat Association’s Around the Island Race, having performed one the water recovery and emergency transfer of a participant in the event and are looking to having an increased presence on the water in the very near future.”

The charity has five ambulances that attend public and sports events on a volunteer basis to ensure the safety of the participants and the public.

It also has two ambulances on loan to the King Edward VII Memorial Hospital (KEMH) to ensure that an ambulance is always available when needed.

Mr Williams added: “I am pleased to note the recent influx of volunteers and trainees to St John.

“We have been fortunate enough to have received the donation of an ambulance from a private trust and financial contributions from businesses such as Allied World Assurance Company Limited, with a recent personal contribution coming from an endowment fund.

“St John’s works closely with the hospital emergency department and would like to thank Dr Shultz, head of the KEMH emergency department, the hospital EMTs, ambulance drivers and the administrative staff of the hospital for their support.”

The St John Ambulance headquarters is presently undergoing a major refurbishment that will include improvements to the training rooms and facilities for garaging the brigade’s fleet of ambulances.

The charity recently received a $24,000 donation from Allied World Assurance Company that will go towards supplies for the ambulances.

Members of the community interested in joining, contributing or donating to the charity can contact the St John secretary at Dunrossil House on Point Finger Road between 10am and 3pm during the week on 236-7831.