Anne Arundel First Responders Will Wear Special Gear: Coronavirus

ANNE ARUNDEL COUNTY, MD — First responders in Anne Arundel County routinely wear eye protection and medical gloves as personal protective gear when they respond to medical calls. Due to the new coronoavirus, if responders suspect a person is ill with the virus, they will add additional gear.

"When encountering a possible COVID patient, they will add an N95 respirator mask and a gown," Anne Arundel County Fire Department Captain Russell Davies told Patch.

Currently, Maryland has 57 confirmed cases as of Tuesday morning. Nationwide, the coronavirus has caused at least 94 deaths as of Tuesday, according to a tracker run by Johns Hopkins. A total of more than 5,700 cases have been confirmed in the United States, with more than 194,000 globally.

During a press conference held by Howard County officials to announce the first coronavirus case in the county, acting fire chief William Anuszewski confirmed that six members of the Howard County Fire Department are engaged in self quarantine after being exposed to the nursing home patient who tested positive. That first confirmed case is an 82-year-old woman who lives at the Lorien Elkridge nursing home.

Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan ordered casinos, racetracks, bars, restaurants, gyms and movie theaters to be shut down after new coronavirus cases in Maryland doubled this week. One of the patients hospitalized is a nursing home resident in Howard County. Maryland, which is under a state of emergency with all public schools closed for two weeks. Hogan also ordered health officials to open closed hospitals across Maryland to increase the state's capacity by 6,000 beds to meet the demand. Currently, there are 9,000 beds available for acute care.

Read more:

• Annapolis Moves To 'Mitigation Strategy' To Fight Coronavirus
• MD Governor Orders Restaurants, Bars, Gyms, Theaters To Close
• MD Grocery Stores Cut Hours For Coronavirus Cleaning, Restocking
• AACPS Expands Free Meal Program During Coronavirus Shutdown