District 1 Restricting Access to Stations; Suspending Non-Emergency Services

An Enfield Firefighter models personal protective equipment used for protection against COVID-19. (Photo courtesy Enfield Fire Rescue)

ENFIELD, Connecticut — Enfield Fire District Chief Ed Richards would like to provide the following message about COVID-19 and the department’s response to Enfield residents.

To our residents,

I want to update our neighbors and community members about how we’re responding to COVID-19 and the steps we’re taking to keep Enfield safe.

These are unprecedented times and I want to assure people our town leaders are monitoring this situation very closely and are following the latest guidelines from federal, state and local health officials. I continue to work closely with the other four fire districts in town. We’re all in this together.

As many are aware, Gov. Lamont ordered the closure of all non-essential businesses as of 8 p.m. yesterday until further notice. We are asking that owners of all non-essential businesses in Enfield adhere to this order.

As always, keeping our community and personnel safe is the most important thing. Because of this, we’ve put in place some changes and restrictions at Enfield Fire Rescue.

Right now, access to stations is limited to members of the department. While we usually love to have you stop by and say hello, for the safety and health of everyone, we’re asking you to please stay home and stay safe.

Non-emergency services, like Fire Marshal inspections are suspended. Smoke detector checks are limited based on circumstances.

We’ll always be there when you call with an emergency, but we will ask you a series of questions, like how you’re feeling, if you have a fever, cough or are short of breath. This will help us determine if our crews need to put on full protective gear. If you do see one of our firefighters dressed like this, please don’t be alarmed. This equipment will help keep both our firefighters and the patient safe.

The most important thing you can do is to stay home as much as possible. Wash your hands frequently with soap and water for at least 20 seconds, or two choruses of Happy Birthday. Make sure you’re practicing social distancing. Stay 6 feet, or about three large steps, away from other people.

I’ve been your Fire Chief through 9/11, SARS, Swine Flu, Avian flu and Ebola. Each one of those events was serious and scary, but together we came through them. And we will come through this if we all do our part as a community.

This is a very fluid situation and things will change over the coming weeks. We will post updates when we have them and will let you know what we’re doing.

In the meantime, you can always find the latest information at coronavirus.gov, at cdc.gov/coronavirus or at ct.gov/coronavirus.

If you have any questions or concerns, please give us a call at 860-745-1878.

Edward N. Richards, Fire Chief

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