2nd virus case at Little Rock Fire Department confirmed; instructor tests positive, chief says

A NEBCO Fire Department truck is shown in this 2017 file photo.
A NEBCO Fire Department truck is shown in this 2017 file photo.

A Little Rock Fire Department instructor has tested positive for covid-19, becoming the second department employee infected with the virus, Chief Delphone Hubbard said.

Hubbard said the instructor's illness is unrelated to that of a department firefighter who tested positive last week.

Four other instructors as well as the 25 recruits they were teaching are all now under self-quarantine, Hubbard said. Two firefighters who worked alongside the first firefighter to become ill are also under quarantine.

Hubbard said the recruits will continue learning via remote instruction, and none of the instructors work as active firefighters answering calls.

EARLIER:

A Little Rock firefighter tested positive for covid-19 last week, Mayor Frank Scott said Monday morning.

The firefighter had been at home under self-quarantine since first feeling sick March 20, according to a news release. The city was notified Thursday he tested positive.

The fire station where the individual worked has been deep-cleaned in accordance with Centers for Disease Control guidelines, according to the release, and Fire Chief Delphone Hubbard said the other two firefighters on the individual's crew are under self-quarantine. He said a crew of three staffs each truck.

Scott said in the release that the city does not know how the firefighter became infected. He added no other firefighters were known to be ill as of Monday morning.

“We will continue to closely monitor this event, taking all precautionary measures to safeguard other firefighters from risk,” Scott said in the release. “I continue to be grateful for the sacrifices of all first responders during this public health emergency and pray for the firefighter’s full recovery.”

The chief said he and the command staff have been working on plans for continuing service if a large portion of the city's 433 firefighters either become sick or need to be quarantined.

The first option, he said, is having firefighters who are not sick work overtime. If there comes a point when that is no longer feasible, Hubbard said stations with two engines in service daily may be reduced to one.

Firefighters have also been taking extra precautions in hopes of avoiding illness, Hubbard said, including wearing full personal protective gear to any medical call.

This story was first published at 10:11 a.m.

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