Joe Deko and Chris Jones got what they thought was a "routine call" that day. Deko and Jones, Guilford Fire Department firefighter/EMTs, were called to a home for a man with a "dementia-related crisis." They helped the man and transported him to the hospital.
A week later came the call, this one not routine.
A fire department captain told Deko that they were exposed to a patient who had tested positive for COVID-19. Four Guilford Police officers were also exposed.
"I was surprised. We didn't have any symptoms and we didn't have any patients who had symptoms," Deko said.
And, at that point, the first responders were not wearing N-95 respirator masks as that order was not yet in place. "When I was told who the patient was, I was surprised. At the time, we didn't have any concerns about exposure."
But they had been exposed and so were ordered quarantined for seven days as the call had been a week before.