By Rachel Engel
LANCASTER, S.C. — A paramedic who tested positive for COVID-19 is now on a ventilator.
Paramedic Richard McKinney was diagnosed with COVID-19 last week, and was hospitalized shortly after, WSOC-TV 9 reported.
“He just started not feeling well,” Josh Faulkenberry, a paramedic and longtime friend of McKinney’s, said. “Then, all of a sudden [he] started having more of the respiratory symptoms.”
On Tuesday, Aug. 17, McKinney was placed on a ventilator.
“Everybody’s kind of walking on eggshells,” EMS Director Clay Catoe said. “We’re 125 employees, and we’re all here to support him, and we want him to pull through.”
Community members and first responders gathered Tuesday to hold a prayer vigil for McKinney and his family.
“I know Richard’s a fighter,” Faulkenberry said. “Between what I know about him, and what I know about God, he’s going to pull through.”