I read the gizmodo article when it came out and it really seems that the only reason these machines are still running is because the few remaining users have found technically-minded friends that can do the tinkering required to keep them running. I wondered at the time if there couldn't be some sort of crowd sourced effort to make replacement parts and help iron lung users find people to service their machines. But the liability associated with doing so seems to be enormous in my mind. I doubt good samaritan laws would protect someone in the slightest if they volunteered to service an iron lung, the user of the iron lung later died, and then the family decided to sue. One would hope that the family would understand the situation enough not to do so, be is there honestly any way to such a situation from happening?

If my grandmother used an iron lung I would absolutely do everything I personally could to keep it running, including servicing it and making replacement parts. But the thought of doing that for a stranger absolutely terrifies me.