Response

Information from the Department of Health’s COVID-19 Dashboard showed a case count of 331 for the week running from Oct. 31 to Nov. 6, a 38.5% increase over the previous week’s 239 cases.

In rural America, the pandemic has brought the crisis to a new apex. Rural firefighters have been on the front lines of the pandemic, tackling wildfires and vehicle accidents even as they transport ill and injured residents to hospitals.

Due to temporary short staff in the 911 center, the financial plan includes a bonus for 911 telecommunicators who work extra hours to cover shifts. The county also approved changing 24-hour shifts to 12-hour shifts.

Steven Johnson, 66, was expecting to get an infection cut out of his hip flesh and bone at Blake Medical Center in Bradenton, Florida, last November. He ended up getting COVID and died.

In one rural hospital, a pharmacist and a business office employee died of COVID-19 within a week of one another, leaving co-workers at Holyoke’s Melissa Memorial Hospital grief stricken and overworked as those positions remain unfilled.

The Text-to-911 service was first available to a limited number of cities across the country in 2014. The service has become more widely available, and software developers have combined other emergency services into an all encompassing platform.

“Things are frayed close to the point of collapse,” says Jerry Schramm, the director of operations for Lancaster EMS. “It is teetering on the point of catastrophe where you may have 911 calls and there might not be an ambulance to respond.”

Polk County's firefighter union sent out a news release Monday saying that the county's fire department this weekend sent out newly hired firefighters who have yet to complete required training and a firetruck short of staff.

For 19 months, that money has flowed to workers and businesses, schools and hospitals, cities and counties and states — every cent meant to alleviate the staggering cost of a pandemic that’s killed 730,000 Americans.

With the technology, the 911 operator can view the profile of the caller and learn about any mental health issues or potential problems with mental illness, human trafficking, or domestic and gang violence.

National Grid said in a press release that damage from the storm is "widespread," with damage hitting both Massachusetts and Rhode Island. More than 222,000 in Massachusetts were without power and 92,000 in Rhode Island.

Cybercriminals, who are becoming increasingly sophisticated, could take advantage of natural disasters such as hurricanes, wildfires and tornadoes to wreak havoc on critical infrastructure, experts say.

EMS crews have been busier than ever this year, as people who delayed getting care during the COVID-19 pandemic have grown progressively sicker. But there’s limited workforce to meet the demand.

"We have huge volumes of very sick patients, a surge of workplace violence against healthcare workers that is being felt nationwide and a workforce that is ready for all of this to be behind us.”

Lessons learned for the next pandemic include clinical trials that examine vulnerable groups like pregnant women and minorities and a better information campaign about the efficacy and safety of vaccinations.

“It’s protocols like this change in response configuration that’s going to help us bridge the gap of the long term problem of staffing so we can start to idle down some of that mandatory overtime.”

The ModUcom system used at the backup center was installed in 2011. However, the county is upgrading to new radios which will interface with VIPER radio systems used throughout the state.

That money will pay for a checklist of items, including assessing erosion at the toe of the earthen dam caused by seepage, evaluating gaps in metal sheet piling, installing survey monuments and assessing underwater components.