Orlando rescuers prepare for virus response
They equip themselves with protective gear and cleaning devices
Orlando Fire Department rescuers are preparing to respond to patients potentially infected with the novel coronavirus by donning fullbody protective gear and decontaminating their transport units after responding to some calls.
At the department’s main fire station Monday morning, Chief Benjamin Barksdale emphasized the importance for those calling 911 to tell dispatchers if they are experiencing flu-like symptoms, so paramedics who respond will know to wear hazmat suits and masks.
“We need that information,” Barksdale said. “It’s very important so that when our people arrive, they are protected and stay protected and not become exposed to where we have to put them out of service, which lessens the staffing.”
There were 131 confirmed cases of coronavirus, also called COVID-19, in Florida as of Monday afternoon. Four were in Orange County.
At Fire Station One on Central Boulevard Monday, firefighters demonstrated how they slip into the head-to-toe hazmat suit, gloves, masks and glasses before responding to calls that may involve coronavirus exposure.
The gear, which is kept on the ambulance, is disposable, and is typically used during any calls involving potentially contagious pathogens. When the first responders arrive back at the station after taking a potentially infected patient to a hospital, they can decontaminate the vehicles with a machine that sprays peroxide mist throughout the cabin.
Barksdale said the equipment “isn’t anything new as far as how we should be protecting ourselves when we’re dealing with medical issues that are very contagious that can affect a lot of people.”
After firefighter Catherine Recicar donned the full protective gear, District Chief Chris Spurlin demonstrated the disinfecting machine, which he said can be used to clean vehicles or rooms in roughly 20 minutes.
Spurlin hooked up the device to an ambulance and a thin peroxide mist filled the cabin. The Fire Department currently has three of the machines: one that is kept at Fire
Station One and two others that are at local hospitals.
The agency purchased a fourth last week, which will also be held at the Central Boulevard station.
Barksdale said OFD will not be testing people for the coronavirus, but those who need help shouldn’t hesitate to call 911. Dispatchers have been told to screen callers for possible coronavirus infection by asking questions about their symptoms and travel, he said.
If called to a home where a person is experiencing symptoms associated with COVID-19, the agency will limit the amount of responders who go inside and interact with that patient.
Barksdale said no responders are currently being monitored for exposure from on the job, but the department has plans in place to restrict duties of employees in those cases. For example, if a firefighter is not wearing the protective gear and transports a patient who later tests positive for COVID-19, that employee will be placed on two-week work restrictions, as is recommended by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Barksdale said.
“If they reduce that or extend that, then we will do the same,” he said.