County Asks for Equipment Donations

Supplies of Personal Protective Equipment are running very low in Milwaukee County. So local officials are calling on the public to donate protective equipment to healthcare workers and first responders.

“We all know this situation is unprecedented and we are asking for extra help from the public,” said Dr. Ben Weston, director of medical services for Milwaukee County.

These supplies include: N95 masks, dust masks, paper surgical masks, safety glasses, protective gowns or suits, hand sanitizer, disinfecting wipes or sprays and disposable medical gloves.

The county has set up a central donation site at the Tommy Thompson Youth Center at 640 S. 84th Street in West Allis. It will be open seven days a week from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. You should enter through Gate 5 at the intersection of S. 84th Street and W. Schlinger Avenue in West Allis and won’t need to get out of your vehicle to make a donation. And, Weston said, please consider donating regardless of the size of your donation or even expiration dates.

These supplies will ensure that health care workers and first responders on the frontline of this pandemic will be able to continue working. Said City of Milwaukee Health Commissioner Jeanette Kowalik: “We don’t want people to get infected by just doing their jobs.”

As cases continue to rise, so does the stress on supplies and healthcare workers.

Right now, Milwaukee County has 206 confirmed cases of COVID-19 and three confirmed COVID-19 related deaths, but the problem is far greater. “Know that with testing criteria and inherent time that it takes for test results that there are many, many more cases than this in the county,” Weston said.

Beyond donating, the most important thing the public can do right now to stem the transmission of the disease is to stay home, officials said.

Healthcare workers need us to stay home. “They are literally putting their lives on the line to protect all of us,” said Mayor Tom Barrett.

Weston, who was preparing for a shift in the emergency department as he updated the press today, said healthcare workers and first responders already have a stressful job, one they often bring home. Now, they have the added stress of bringing a disease home.

Weston said this to underscore the importance of donating so they can keep working, and, even more important, for the public to stay home.

Editors note: Urban Milwaukee has corrected the story to reflect the accurate location of the drop off center. An incorrect location was given at a press conference Monday, any media reporting another location is wrong.