BROWN COUNTY, Wis. (NBC 26) -- First responders in Brown County have made changes to their operations in hopes of preventing the spread of coronavirus.
On Monday, Brown County Sheriff Todd Delain put the following actions into place:
- All jail inmate visitation canceled besides attorney or other professional visits
- All public fingerprinting canceled
- All drug take-back and drop off at BRSO facilities canceled
- All citizen ride alongs canceled
- All public officer-requested community or school presentations canceled
- All public facility tours, events, meetings, and target room usage canceled
Lieutenant Kevin Pawlak with the Brown County Sheriff's office said non-emergency calls will likely be dealt with over the phone rather than in person. He said officers are used to being out in the communtiy, but at this time, they're trying to limit contact with the public to keep employees and the rest of the community healthy. Lt. Pawlak said they will still be responding to higher priority calls.
"If you're up to bad things, we will be responding as aggressive as we always have if it's life threatening or if you're breaking a law and there's people in jeopardy, we will be responding as fast as we always did," added Lt. Pawlak.
According to the sheriff's office, these changes will be continuously re-evaulated and any changes before April 5 will be publicly announced.
Local fire departments are also making changes to hopefully limit the spread. Dr. Steve Stroman is an emergency and EMS physician with BayCare Clinic and the medical director for several fire departments and EMS agencies. He was at De Pere Fire Rescue on Tuesday, discussing procedures and addressing coronavirus.
"If we've determined there's a high risk for something like the coronavirus or any other potential infectious disease that we want to manage, we would probably limit the number of people we would send in," added Dr. Stroman.
Dr. Stroman said they might even selectively send people onto the scene who are at a lower risk level. He said they have protective gear including gloves, gowns, eye protection and face masks available in case they think they could be dealing with the illness. He said dispatchers are now asking patients about fevers and potential exposure to coronavirus which can help first responders know what they might be responding to so they can prepare and make sure they have the right equipment available.
He said the safety measures in place for coronavirus will continue as long as the virus is a threat to the community.
Dr. Stroman said it's important for everyone to continue to be diligent in cleaning and looking out for people who are at a higher risk of coronavirus like those with chronic medical conditions and the older members of our community.
