'HARK!' - A NEW LAND ROVER HELPS DEAF CHILDREN IN AFRICA

In a ceremony attended by the well-known British television personality Sir
Trevor McDonald and High Commissioners from a number of Commonwealth countries,
a new 'HARK!' vehicle was handed over today to the Commonwealth Society for the
Deaf ('Sound Seekers') at the Land Rover showroom in Park Lane, London.
Christened 'HARK!' from 'Hearing Assessment and Research Centre' the vehicle is
a mobile clinic built by Macclesfield Motor Bodies (MMB) on a Land Rover
Defender 130 chassis. This vehicle is the third in the 'HARK!' series and will
be used to screen and treat children with hearing difficulties in remote areas
of Africa - this vehicle being intended for the Eastern Cape of South Africa.
The Commonwealth Society for the Deaf, whose Patron is HRH The Duke of York and
whose President is Sir Trevor McDonald, was founded to help children in rural
areas who suffer from infective ear disease and impaired hearing. "Many
children suffer from ear disease which can be easily treated once diagnosed.
Curing their problems opens up a new world of educational opportunities," said
Sound Seekers' Chief Executive Brigadier John Davis. The 'HARK!' vehicles are
also used to train local staff in techniques to prevent ear disease, to provide
information to families and to collect statistical information on the extent of
ear disease in Africa.

The body for the Defender 130, resplendent in its yellow 'HARK!' livery was
built by MMB International, Macclesfield, Cheshire who have been building
bodies for Land Rover for 18 years. MMB International offer a wide range of
ambulance bodies for Land Rover and their vehicles are in service in 70
countries world-wide. The vehicle is designed to be self-sufficient and
includes a variety of auditory measuring equipment especially designed for
children. Other features include air conditioning and awnings appropriate to
its role in hot countries.

Well known in Africa and around the world the Defender is the icon of the Land
Rover brand. While embodying the latest technology the Defender can trace its
lineage back to the original Land Rover and this heritage of operating in harsh
conditions around the world makes Land Rover the ideal choice as a robust basis
for the 'HARK!' project. The Defender 130 is the largest vehicle in the
Defender model range and features a gross vehicle weight of 3500 kg. This makes
it an ideal platform for a number of conversions including ambulances, support
vehicles for public utilities and mobile clinics such as 'HARK!' As well as
conversions by coach builders such as MMB International, many vehicles are
converted at Land Rover Special Vehicles at Solihull. Most Defender vehicles
are fitted with the all-new, 2.5 litre 5 cylinder TD5 diesel engine but the 2.5
litre, 4 cylinder 300 TDi engine is available for export outside Europe and
this engine is fitted to the 'HARK!' vehicle.
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www.ambulance-sales.co.uk