Guidelines from the CDC on Laundering

Clothing including FRC’s, and other items that go in the laundry

If possible, do not shake dirty laundry. This will minimize the possibility of dispersing the virus through the air. Launder items as appropriate in accordance with the manufacturer’s instructions. If possible, launder items using the warmest appropriate water setting for the items and dry items completely. Dirty laundry from an ill person can be washed with other people’s items.

1. Wear Gloves for Laundry
2. Use Laundry Detergent – Soap Kills the Virus
3. Use Warm Water 
4. Dry Completely – Heat Kills the Virus

Covid-19 can remain active on porous surfaces like carpet, clothing for hours and on non-porous surfaces like steel and aluminum for days.

You could spread COVID-19 to others even if you do not feel sick.

Cover your mouth and nose with a cloth face cover when around others – and if you wear FRC’s, a Fire Retardant Mask ensures your outer layer is compliant when on the job. 

• Everyone should wear a cloth face cover when they have to go out in public, for example to    the grocery store, to pick up other necessities. 
• The cloth face cover is meant to protect other people in case you are infected.
• Do NOT use a facemask meant for a healthcare worker.
• Continue to keep about 6 feet between yourself and others. 
• The cloth face cover is not a substitute for social distancing.

Can N95 Masks Protect Me from a Virus?

The emergence of coronavirus (and SARS before that) has a lot of people concerned and stocking up on N95 masks. Viruses and bacteria are generally too small for a mask to protect against, though they are almost always in a droplet from a sneeze or cough. The mask will stop the droplets.

Please also remember that your eyes are another pathway, so glasses or goggles may be prudent. Another good thing about wearing a mask is that it prevents you from touching your nose and mouth! This is a prime route for the spread of viruses.

If you are the infected person, please avoid the masks that have an exhalation valve. They do breathe easier than those without, but they allow unfiltered air to escape the mask, and this may not be what you have in mind.

It’s also recommended that you wear a face mask if you have symptoms and are entering a healthcare facility for treatment, and healthcare professionals would likely benefit from wearing one as well. If you do wear a mask, choose one that can be fitted to your face, and use the same health and hygiene practices you would use to prevent the flu (stay home if you’re sick, wash your hands frequently and thoroughly, avoid close contact with others, and keep the disinfectant handy).

Choosing the right PPE for your workers and job can seem like a daunting prospect, but it’s a necessary one to make sure that everyone stays healthy on the job.

If you have questions regarding how to properly clean your equipment during this time, please contact us at salesandservice@scfire.com or call 800-747-6690

Born to parents on a small cotton farm in the early 1940s, I spent most of my formative years in the Stamford, Texas area pulling cotton and driving combines/tractors. Actually, Stamford was a metropolis compared to a little town where we actually lived. A place called Avoca with maybe a handful of people; most were relatives! To say the least, I was a “dirt poor” country boy with three younger brothers and no aspiration or encouragement to go much higher!

If any of you have had an opportunity to watch the eight-part series on Ken Burn’s “History of Country Music”, you’ll see that several of the major country music stars grew up in poverty, and pulled cotton, but had a “God-given talent” to see above their poor roots to become famous and rich singers. Not me, I had no music ability and had to work!

In the mid-1950s, my parents moved to Abilene when I was fourteen, and Dad started working in the oilfields as a roughneck. I finished high school in Abilene, played basketball for Abilene High School for three years. During the summer months, I worked for the trash department for two and a half summers (thought I would be on the street crew) and also worked on drilling rigs for a couple of summers as well. Luckily, I got a two-year scholarship at Cisco Junior College playing basketball and baseball. More importantly, I met my wife, Linda in Cisco and we married in 1962 after a short courtship.

After finishing my two years at Cisco Junior College, Linda and I moved to Abilene where I worked for General Dynamics when they were building the missile sites there to protect Dyess Air Force Base from the USSR / Cuban threats! That job didn’t last long; however, not wanting to farm or roughneck the rest of my life, we decided to go to Texas Tech in Lubbock to finish my college degree. Without a place to stay and no job, we packed the smallest U-Haul trailer (almost half full) to make the two-hour trip north to Lubbock. Thank goodness we both found jobs quickly. I delivered newspapers to the paper route guys (2 am to 5 am) every morning and (3 pm to 5 pm) every evening when the Lubbock Avalanche Journal printed two editions each day. Linda went to work for a Chevrolet dealership right away. Probably wasting a full year in Pre-Dental, I finally decided to pursue a Bachelor of Business Administration majoring in Marketing, which apparently was the correct move.

Graduating in 1965, we can honestly look back on our time in Lubbock as the hardest three years of our life. Our parents were not able to help us financially. We managed to finish without any student loans or scholarships. As Mac Davis’s song about his favorite day was “Looking at Lubbock in My Rearview Mirror”, it seemed as if it had been written for us!

After several “blown” interviews, I finally accepted a job with Continental Emsco in the oil patch, making a whopping $550.00 a month, we were rich! One positive thing that occurred in Lubbock was the birth of our first child – Jayme, who is now part of the team leading South Coast Fire & Safety.

(To be continued)