The PFD COVID-19 Support Fund Mission
The Fund serves to support emergency needs that arise as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic crisis that is specifically aimed towards helping the Philadelphia Fire Department members. These include providing supplies for health, safety, wellness, as well as advocacy efforts around these areas. Such initiatives include:
Sanitation/Disinfection Efforts:
This first, and most immediate, initiative includes the fire Station cleaning & disinfecting kits. Kits will include products and tools for cleaning and properly disinfecting their stations and apparatus. Future supply replenishment efforts may be needed.
PPE Emergency Contingency Stockpile:
Building a modest stockpile of PPE supplies that could be accessible as a contingency plan to have for members when it’s not easily accessible from the warehouse due to urgency of need or time of day. This includes N95 masks, medical gloves, face shields, as well as cleaning/disinfecting supplies. Location for this is still being worked out – ideally it would exist at a few locations as a standby need and only distributed when there is no other option.
Health/Emergency kit:
An ongoing and concurrent effort to the safety and cleaning initiatives is to help ensure there are ongoing efforts of monitoring members’ health throughout each shift. Immediate efforts to acquire a digital thermometer and disposal covers for each station is ongoing. The goal for this is centered around having one at the station at all times regardless of a medic unit being located at a particular station. Additional items may need to be acquired if there are not fully stocked first aid kits and supplies available at each station. (Having an ambulance at some stations does not count because they are not often there and will only increase in their demands during this pandemic.)
