New York Fire Officer dies of COVID 19 Exposure

[Not_A_Llama]

So as to build equivalent awareness and statement of the impact of COVID19 on the fire service, a limited selection of LODD from April 2020 onward is being posted.

Andrew DiMaggio, Fire Captain

Fire Captain Andrew DiMaggio contracted COVID-19 during the course of his official duties at the firehouse.

Department information
New Rochelle Fire Department
90 Beaufort Place
New Rochelle, New York 10801

Chief: Andrew Sandor

Fatality status is provisional and may change as USFA contacts State Fire Marshals to verify fatality incident information.

Age: 57
Rank: Fire Captain
Classification: Career
Incident date: April 5, 2020 11:00
Date of death: May 3, 2020
Cause of death: Exposure
Nature of death: Other
Activity type: In-Station Duties
Emergency duty: No
Duty type: Other On-Duty
Fixed property use: Store/Office

https://apps.usfa.fema.gov/firefighter-fatalities/fatalityData/detail?fatalityId=4917

[FoxtArt]

R.I.P. - having reviewed all, many* of the firefighters/EMTs were in their 40's. Undoubtedly most, possibly all with families and children.

*edited after reviewing new ones.

[KevDen2005]

R.I.P. - having reviewed all, many* of the firefighters/EMTs were in their 40's. Undoubtedly most, possibly all with families and children.

*edited after reviewing new ones.

This is a very sad state of affairs, almost moreso when they are part time or volunteer status fire fighters. Contracting an illness that is in the uncertain stages still no doubt scary to these guys responding to every single call. Some states haven't even recognized the disease as being duty related yet. God bless these first responders.

[FoxtArt]

Indeed. Coupled with all the normal risks of being a responder (to which they are mostly aware when they signed on) they do not have the power of choice to avoid this new risk outside of quitting. It's a tragedy it is not fully recognized as duty related. It's different from the risk we face - save for the selective closures, we all can choose to patronize stores, or not, stay home, or not, wear masks, or not (for the most part), and the ramification of those individual decisions in virtually every case, is nothing.

Yet, how many people would want to have to go into a house where someone is gasping for air right now? Much less a dozen homes? Then you have to wonder if you bring that around your family, your elderly relatives, etc, and there's no advance knowledge if you're genetically asymptomatic or not.

It's easy to disconnect from the human toll when "we don't personally know someone", we're bored, or bickering about stupidity. How many fatalities from 9/11 did most of us personally know? For the vast majority of Colorado citizens that answer is 0 - yet we greatly felt that human toll, and honored the responders from that - who had to race into those building without a choice. The tolls of this are far greater, but more disconnected, and in some cases, disrespected. Not here.

If you guys know of a reliable charity that supports surviving family members of first responders in this situation, please share - I'd suspect the most reliable info from that comes from your respective circles.