BOSTON (WHDH) - Over the last few months, Massachusetts has received and purchased tens of thousands of masks for first responders and health care professionals amid the coronavirus pandemic.
According to a test performed at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, some of those masks, like the KN95s from China, have proven to be defective.
The state’s website advises paramedics not to use those KN95s when performing certain procedures on COVID-19-positive patients.
“We’ve been at a deficit and been behind on things as far as PPE from the start,” Rich MacKinnon, president of the Professional Firefighters of Massachusetts organization, said.
Massachusetts firefighters and police officers were relieved to be getting respirator masks as quickly as the state has been able to acquire them.
“Just even having a basic encounter with anyone while wearing a KN95 mask that doesn’t meet the standard is that it increases the level of exposure to our firefighters, to our EMTs, to our paramedics,” MacKinnon said.
Lawrence Police Chief Roy Vasque said that his officers are using a more advanced respirator out on the street. However, he said they did wear the state-issued masks inside the station until they learned of their shortcomings. They were able to procure replacements.
“We contacted our MEMA rep immediately and we went down to Tewksbury, I believe it was, and we picked up a whole shipment, along with the fire department here in town,” Vasque said. “We got them very quickly so I can’t say enough about their work in getting replacements for us.”
The Massachusetts Emergency Management Agency said it will provide different masks for police and fire departments based on their requests.
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