By Laura French
NEW YORK — The number of FDNY members who have tested positive for COVID-19 has risen to 46 as of Monday, Commissioner Daniel Nigro said at a media briefing.
Nigro said those who tested positive include firefighters, EMS personnel and civilian staffers, according to FOX 5 NY. He said two department members are hospitalized and the rest are at home recovering.
The commissioner also told Fox News that the department only has enough personal protective equipment for a “very short period of time … weeks of supply, not months or more.”
The FDNY issued an order on March 6 that pulled firefighters back from lower-priority calls describing COVID-19 symptoms. On March 9, the department confirmed its first case after an EMS provider tested positive, and said a total of 19 members were quarantined. On March 15, a Brooklyn firefighter tested positive, and at least 38 members were quarantined.
As of March 19, 125 firefighters, 49 EMS providers and four civilian workers were being monitored for possible exposure, according to the Daily News. The department did not give an exact breakdown of the members who tested positive but estimated at least 20 EMS providers were infected.