Bloomington Fire Department Employee Receives Positive COVID-19 Result

(BLOOMINGTON) – One employee of the Bloomington Fire Department (BFD) reported receiving a positive result of a COVID-19 viral test on Friday, February 5 after starting to experience symptoms on Thursday, February 4.  The employee’s last shift was Tuesday, February 2. 

After the report of the positive test result, co-workers identified as close contacts were notified, and cleaning protocols of the employee’s workspace and shared areas and vehicles were completed. 

No members of the public were exposed to this employee in the course of the employee’s work. 

This is the 14th BFD employee to have received a positive COVID result since March 2020; however, this employee had not been identified as a close contact of a previous COVID-19 case in the department or at the City.  (Close contact is defined by Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) as someone who was within six feet of an infected person for at least 15 minutes starting from two days before illness onset or, for asymptomatic clients, two days prior to positive specimen collection–until the time the patient is isolated.) 

Today’s announcement brings to 69 the total number of positive COVID-19 viral test results that have been reported since the start of the pandemic by City workers, including those employed by the municipal corporations that operate the water utility (CBU) and transit system (BT). Sixteen total cases were reported during the eight months from March through October 2020.

That monthly rate rose eight-fold in November, when 16 cases were reported within the single month, and rose another 38 percent in December (22 cases). January saw the monthly rate decline 45 percent to 12 positive cases.  Only three cases have been reported to date this month. 

A department-specific chart of COVID-19 cases among City employees, together with other City-related COVID-19 news, may be found here.  

The City of Bloomington is committed to sharing information about how its operations and workforce are affected by this public health emergency, and will continue to provide weekly updates about confirmed cases among staff while protecting employees’ privacy.