WEST PARK, FLA. (WSVN) - The Broward Emergency Supply Center is making sure all first responders have the valuable equipment they need during the pandemic.
The City of West Park picked up masks and other equipment for their first responders as the number of coronavirus cases in South Florida continues to climb.
Director of Broward County Parks and Recreation Dan West said, “It’s a big task. We were activated only about three weeks ago, about 25 days in the business.”
West said the warehouse being used usually stores supplies for hurricanes and now is receiving masks, gowns and face shields for distribution.
West said, “What goes to long-term care centers, goes to hospitals, municipalities, we have over 31 municipalities as well as the Broward Municipal Services District, so we serve really 33 government agencies as well as hospitals.”
Boxes in the warehouse are labeled with different hospitals to be transported to.
Because the equipment is so hard to come by, workers have to carefully count and sort it all.
“Now we’re doing it everyday, seven days a week, about 10-hour shifts, if not longer depending on how many trucks we get in from the state,” West said.
He said he was grateful for South Florida’s experience with disasters and can organize quickly.
West said, “It’s not an easy effort. It takes a lot of people to make this happen. It’s not just one group of people and the municipalities and first responders. We all know how important they are to this community. I don’t think people know it until they actually see such a disaster like this.”
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