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The pandemic hasn’t changed what the Perryville Fire Department does, but according to Perryville Assistant Fire Chief Bill Jones, it has changed how firefighters do it.
“It’s very tough for us to social distance in the fire and rescue world,” Jones said. “We are wearing personal protective equipment more than ever before.”
To go along with that, Jones said that on things such as alarm calls to places such as healthcare facilities and nursing homes, the fire department is limiting the number of personnel thatenters the building initially.
“Many of the alarm calls that we receive are faulty alarms with bad sensors,” Jones said, “So instead of tracking through a hospital with two engine companies of people, which is about 10 people, we have assigned a fire officer to check it out, with fewer people. That way we limit exposure to our officers and we don’t take something into the building.”
Jones said the COVID-19 pandemic has him and all other emergency personnel “on edge” because “it’s not a matter of if, but when” his firefighters will come in contact with someone with the virus.
Thankfully, Jones said that no one at the fire department has come in contact with the virus at this point — as far as he knows — but he’s not resting on that fact. He said he is in search of PPE on a daily basis, constantly calling companies to buy masks and gloves.
“There was been talk of us getting PPE from state and federal agencies early on,” Jones said. “That hasn’t panned out, probably because they are limited too. I’m always looking for masks, gloves, and hand sanitizer in addition to the Tyvek coveralls. The good thing is I found one of our manufacturers that is not usually in the hand sanitizer space that has switched its company to making that. Gloves and masks are hit and miss, but we are managing. We are used to wearing our masks and hoods and fire suits, but the PPE we are short on is the stuff we use with hazardous materials only once or twice a year.”
When the firefighters aren’t out on a call, they are following protocols set out by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention when it comes to hand washing and staying safe.
“Those types of protocols are sent out for a reason and we follow them the best we can,” Jones said.
In addition to his duties as assistant fire chief and assistant police chief, Jones also serves as the city’s director of emergency management. In this role, Jones is normally concerned with natural disasters, but has had to step into the world of communicable disease.
“No one that’s alive today has dealt with anything on this scale before,” Jones said. “Have we planned for it and done exercises? Yes. But the last major pandemic the United States has seen was the Spanish Flu.”
The question is, how does one plan for something that hasn’t happened for 100 years?
“You have to learn from history,” Jones said. “Let’s face it, there’s a lot more knowledge about epidemiology and what these viruses can do. Now we count on scientists and doctors to make the outcomes more in our favor.”
As of Tuesday, there have been 41 cases of COVID-19 in Perry County with 35 recoveries, and Jones believes that the stay home orders are a big reason why the number of cases have been limited.
“The way that Missouri and the country will get through this is if we hunker down and abide [by the state guidelines],” Jones said. “It’s no fun, but the earlier we listen, the sooner we can get back to normal.”
