Excerpts from the ChicagoSunTimes.com:
Suburban police and fire departments Tuesday began stocking up on the 240,000 N95 masks being distributed by Cook County officials over the next two days to combat. The protective gear was donated by the U.S. Department of Defense in coordination with the Federal Emergency Management Agency.
A Bellwood firefighter loaded up an ambulance with 37 boxes, filled with 160 masks each, tThe Alsip Fire Department stocked a trailer with 15 boxes, the South Chicago Fire Department packed a truck bed with boxes containing 2,300 face masks, and the Homewood Police Department loaded up an SUV with 5,000 pairs of gloves and more than 1,000 face masks along. Representatives from the Morton Grove Police Department and the Matteson Police Department were also on hand to receive supplies.
William Barnes, head of the county’s Emergency Management and Regional Security, said the new masks supplement local reserves. “We have a reserve of personal protective equipment that we continue to replenish through a variety of sources, those are through donations, purchases … but the 240,000 masks that received from FEMA, by and large exceeds any influx that we’ve had.”
The county has already doled out roughly 700,000 pieces of personal protective equipment, including gloves, hair covers and foot booties within the last month.
