8 Lexington firefighters have tested positive for COVID-19; 40 placed in quarantine
Eight Lexington firefighters have tested positive for the coronavirus. Four have already recovered and are back on the job, officials with the Lexington Fire Department said Friday.
“The firefighters who have tested positive have not required hospitalization, and we expect the four firefighters who remain in isolation to fully recover, as well,” said Battalion Chief Jordan Saas, a spokesman for the department.
To date, 40 firefighters have been quarantined because they may have been exposed to a firefighter who tested positive, Saas said.
Eighteen of the 40 firefighters are still in quarantine. Twenty-two are now out of quarantine and staffing ambulances and fire trucks.
Despite the large number of staff unable to work, the fire department has still been able to respond to fire calls and ambulance runs, Saas said.
“Due to the familial nature of the firehouse, which includes close quarters, we have quarantined entire fire crews out of an abundance of caution,” Saas said. “Fortunately, our staffing levels have allowed us to err on the side of caution without having to close any stations.”
Saas said firefighters who have to quarantine are given the option of staying in a local hotel. The Lexington Fire Department posted on its Facebook page Thursday a video of hotel employees dressed as animals dancing outside a hotel room to entertain quarantined firefighters staying there.
Saas said it’s impossible to say how the eight firefighters who have tested positive for the coronavirus contracted the illness.
“Because the virus is so widespread, it is difficult to pinpoint the source of the virus with any amount of certainty,” Saas said.
Lexington Fire Chief Kristin Chilton announced March 27 that the first Lexington firefighter had tested positive for the respiratory illness and was in isolation. In addition, eight other firefighters who had close contact with that firefighter were in quarantine. Chilton said at the time the department did not believe the firefighter was exposed to the virus on the job.
A spokeswoman for the Lexington Police Department said Friday no police officers have tested positive for COVID-19 or have had to quarantine due to a possible exposure.
This story was originally published April 10, 2020 at 12:38 PM.
