The state firefighter union president is sounding the alarm over a potential “very large spike” in firefighters sidelined by coronavirus over the next few weeks, calling for legislative help as protective equipment runs thin.
“Over the next few weeks we’re predicting a large number of firefighters and other public safety personnel being either quarantined or sick,” said Richard MacKinnon Jr., president of the Professional Fire Fighters of Massachusetts union. “We could see a very large spike in first responders, firefighters effected.”
MacKinnon called for the state to pass bills that would make it so that emergency responders who contract contagious diseases be presumed to have done so in the line of duty unless proven otherwise — and therefore be in line for benefits as though injured on the job.