St.Louis Firefighters, EMTs Wear Masks To Battle Flu

Fire Department spokeswoman Kim Bacon said all personnel were ordered to use the masks beginning Tuesday. She said the department is dealing with the double blow of illness among its own personnel and a sharp increase in sick calls.

In St. Louis, firefighters also are dispatched to calls of illness and injury.

Emergency Medical Services personnel, who operate the ambulances, work for the Fire Department, and the city traditionally handles a high number of residential sick calls.

"The experts predicted an early and tremendously bad flu season, and they were right," Bacon said Wednesday. "We've had so many calls. Not everybody needs to call 911 for the flu."

Bacon said standard surgical masks are sufficient to ward off flu and other respiratory illnesses because the viruses are borne in moisture droplets. Ambulance services also carry more-protective designs of masks designed to protect against airborne anthrax and other, much-smaller infectants. Personnel also routinely wear rubber surgical gloves when attending to sick cases.

A check with 10 other area fire agencies found none that had issued blanket orders to use masks on all medical calls, but the Florissant Valley and Maryland Heights fire districts did advise their personnel this week to consider wearing masks on some sick calls.

"Right now, we're leaving it up to the personal discretion of the medics," said Maryland Heights Deputy Chief Mark Lockhart, whose department issued its advisory Monday.

The St. Louis area is suffering from a widespread outbreak of flu and related illnesses that have been sweeping across much of the United States.

But some area departments reported having noticed little increase in direct contact with the illnesses.

Tim Brown, operations manager of MedStar Ambulance Inc. in the Metro East area, said he has noticed no serious increase in flu-related calls and has had only a few of his personnel call in sick with it.

MedStar serves East St. Louis, Belleville, Fairview Heights and several other communities.