HR Bright Spot: Friends Near and Far Make Donations of PPE
A couple of weeks ago, Holliston Fire Captain John Gagnon was contacted by his friend Doug Urmston. Doug had 100 N95 face masks on order and they were due to arrive soon. Urmston asked if the HFD would accept his donation of those masks. Of course the answer was YES!
When the masks arrived, CPT Gagnon went to Doug’s shop to pick up the donation. CPT Gagnon immediately delivered the ‘haul’ to Fire Chief Michael Cassidy to add to Holliston’s first responder supply.
Doug and his son Nick own D&M Auto Parts, recently if Holliston, currently in Medway.
Closer to home, we heard that Deputy Fire Chief Mark Dellicker also made a donation of protective masks to the Town’s stockpile of Personal Protective Equipment.
When asked to confirm our ‘tip’, Mark humbly replied, “It is true when I found out that we only had a few n95 masks for the fire and ambulance I was able to go on line and find 100 brand new masks and had them delivered in a few days. Now we have masks on each truck and a box for the ambulance. The men and women of the fire and ambulance are like family to me and deserve what ever we can get for them to stay safe.”
Thank you Doug, Nick, and Mark for your generosity at this critical time in our world.
3 Comments
Thank you for sharing these “bright spots”! I love reading them.
But how come we didn’t have the PPEs on-hand as part of the emergency management plan?
The Department had a limited supply of N95 masks as part of its inventory, with sufficient backup to replenish normal use. When the virus started spreading across the globe, the Department ordered additional N95 masks from its vendors in February. All established supply chains were delayed – the majority of existing vendors were out of stock, and could not guarantee delivery until at least May. As a municipality, the Department is constrained by procurement regulations; they can’t just go to eBay and order supplies.
Once the State of Emergency was declared by the Select Board on March 16, it opened up additional purchasing options. Between the generous donations that were made by those mentioned in the article (as well as more than a dozen other individuals and companies who were not highlighted), the equipment that was ordered and received in March, plus the allotment from a regional cache, the department is well equipped going into the anticipated surge. We still have more supplies that have shipped but have not yet arrived.
All first responders in Holliston have been provided the proper PPE for their functional assignment. We have equipped police, fire, EMS, and DPW workers in accordance with CDC guidance, based on a hazard analysis.