As the coronavirus threatens to sideline large numbers of firefighters, the Lynchburg Fire Department is taking steps to limit the number of first responders working at each of the city’s eight fire stations to help slow the spread of the disease among its ranks.
The move comes just four days after a Lynchburg firefighter tested positive for COVID-19, the disease caused by the coronavirus. Two other firefighters suspected of having the disease are awaiting test results and another 23 are in quarantine as a precaution, according to Fire Chief Greg Wormser.
To allow firefighters to practice social distancing while on duty, the number of firefighters working inside a station has been capped at seven, Wormser said. Previously, up to about a dozen people could be working at a station.