KCRA 3’S MELINDA MEZA TALKED WITH FIREFIGHTERS AND SAN JOAQUIN COUNTY WHO SAY PROTECTION IS KEY. MELINDA: THEY NOT ONLY GO FIRES, BUT STOCKTON FIREFIGHTERS RESPOND TO MEDICAL CALLS A WEL WE ARE PROBABLY GOING TO RUN 55,000 CALLS. MELINDA: LOCAL 456 PRESIDENT MARIO GARDEA SAYS FIREFIGHTERS NEED PROTECTION FROM NOT ONLY FLAMES, BUT THE CORONAVIRUS. >> THIS IS A BIG CONCERN. MELINDA: THEY ARE ASKING THE SAN JOAQUIN COUNTY EMERGENCY SERVICE MEDICAL AGENCY TO REQUIRE DISPATCHERS TO PRESCREEN CALLERS, SO FIRST RESPONDERS CAN PROPERLY PREPARE >> SOME SIMPLE QUESTIONS GIVE US A PRE-ALERT FOR THE KIND OF CALLS WE ARE GOING ON. MELINDA: MASKS AND FULL GEAR ARE AVAILABLE. >> I LOOK AT IT AS IF WE ARE GOING TO A STRUCTURE FIRE AND IT WAS A KNOWN METHYL LAB. WE WOULD WEAR DIFFERENT EQUIPMENT GOING INTO THAT FIRE. MELINDA: HE SAYS OTHER COUNTIES ARE DOING IT AND A QUARANTINE HERE COULD HURT STOCKTON FIRE. FOR EXAMPLE IF A FIREFIGHTER IS ON A CALL FROM A STATION LIKE THIS ONE AND WAS EXPOSED TO THE VIRUS, HE WOULD EXPOSE NOT ONLY HIS CREW BUT THE CREW BEFORE AND AFTER HIS. THE UNION SAID THIS COULD QUARANTINE AN ENTIRE STATION. >> WE ARE ASKING FOR 15 TO 30 SECONDS TO ASK THE QUESTIONS. MELINDA: THE SAN JOAQUIN COUNTY EMERGENCY SERVICE DIRECTOR SENT KCRA 3 THIS STATEMENT WHIC READS IN PART, USING EMD PRE-SCREENING RISK FACTORS DOE NOT CAPTURE ALL CASES AS A SUBSTANTIAL PORTION OF POSITIVE CASES WITHIN CALIFORNIA HAVE BEEN PERSON-TO-PERSON COMMUNITY-BASED EXPOSURE I HAVE ALREADY DIRECTED PRE-HOSPITAL PERSONNEL TO TAKE ALL NECESSARY PRECAUTIONS WITH FULL PPE WHEN ATTENDING TO ANY PATIENT PRESENTING WITH SIGNS AND SYMPTOMS OF A RESPIRATORY ILLNESS. BUT THE FIRE UNION SAYS IF THEY RUN EVERY CALL WITH FULL GEAR THEY WILL DEPLETE THEIR RESOURCES QUICKLY, SINCE THEY RUN 36,000 EMS CALLS EACH YEAR. >> WE DON’T WANT