The reality of the COVID-19 pandemic struck Rob Puls on March 19, when Bayfield County confirmed its first positive case of the virus.
Puls coordinates paramedics for Great Divide Ambulance, which staffs four ambulances around the clock in the 15,000-person county that hugs Lake Superior. The four vehicles cover around 730 square miles, an area three times the size of Chicago.
“I think everybody up here was shocked, because they thought we were rural and removed,” Puls said of the positive test, the first of the county’s three confirmed COVID-19 cases so far.
Like other health care and essential workers, Puls’ crews have beefed up their use of personal protective equipment (PPE) as they try to stay safe during the pandemic.