At Hennepin Healthcare, paramedics are being told to shave their beards and mustaches so masks will properly seal around their mouths.
Firefighters on medical calls are limiting how many enter an enclosed space at once.
And police detectives are more often interviewing suspects and witnesses in the field, rather than bringing them back to the station.
Across the Twin Cities metro, first responders without the luxury of social distancing are recalibrating their response to reduce their exposure to COVID-19. As the virus spreads, and panic follows, emergency dispatchers are seeing a spike in call volumes. On Tuesday, a coalition of Minneapolis and Hennepin County responders called on residents to avoid dialing 911 if they are experiencing flu symptoms.
“The goal is to reserve 911 for true emergencies,” Hennepin Healthcare EMS Chief Marty Scheerer said at a news conference.