The FDNY will be ditching its disposable protective coronavirus masks for reusable ones, officials said Tuesday.
New elastomeric respirator masks will be distributed to Emergency Medical Service members and firefighters in the weeks to come, Fire Commissioner Daniel Nigro said. “This is a substantial piece of equipment, but it will take us out of the supply chain for N95 masks that the whole world uses,” Nigro told the Daily News. “The N95 mask is a key piece of protection against the coronavirus, but these masks offer the same protection and there is a great benefit of it being reusable since we will be using them on every call.”
Emergency medical technicians and paramedics could be sporting the new masks — which look like something a member of a Hazmat team or an industrial painter wound wear — by the end of the week, officials said. FDNY members will still have a supply of N95 masks available to them as a backup.