Many first responders nationwide fall ill with coronavirus

Hundreds of police officers and firefighters across the United States have been stricken with the coronavirus as they work to protect the public.

Nearly 690 officers and civilian employees at police departments and sheriff's offices have tested positive for COVID-19, according to an Associated Press survey this week of more than 40 law enforcement agencies, mostly in major cities. The number of those in isolation as they await test results is far higher in many places.

A Washington Post analysis of reported crimes from more than a dozen cities found a notable decline in crime that started when people started being urged in mid-March to work from home and stay away from others. Violent crimes have remained relatively flat overall, the data show.

Among major cities whose police departments report confirmed coronavirus cases are New York, Detroit, Boston, Chicago, Cincinnati, Dallas, Los Angeles, Houston, Miami, Miami Beach, Milwaukee, Nashville, New Orleans and Philadelphia.

The hardest hit police department is New York City's. More than 1,400 department employees, including more than 1,000 officers, have contracted COVID-19 as emergency calls in the city hit record highs, the police chief said Wednesday.

Some 6,100 uniformed officers, or about 17 percent of the 36,000-strong workforce, called out sick Wednesday, Police Chief Terence Monahan said.

New York Fire Department officials told NBC News on Tuesday that 282 members, including firefighters, emergency medical team members, and civilians, have tested positive for COVID-19.

At the same time, emergency call volume is hitting record daily highs, the department said. On Monday, 6,527 medical calls were placed to 911, and over the past few days, the fire department has had to "hold" hundreds of calls, meaning that lower-priority sick calls have to wait for ambulances.

In Santa Rosa, California, the police department said a detective, Marylou Armer, a 20-year veteran of the department died Tuesday from coronavirus complications. She was among the first two members of the department to test positive for COVID-19 on March 24, the department said in a social media post and news release.

Other police departments also have reported deaths, including New York City and Detroit. The New York City police department said it has had five deaths – including three officers – and two department employees.

As of Tuesday, Detroit's 2,200-person police force had 522 officers on quarantine, 76 had tested positive, including the chief of police. Two officers have died, including Captain Jonathan Parnell, a three-decade veteran, who died last week.

The city's fire department had 133 employees quarantined and 17 employees there had confirmed cases of the virus.

A March 6 birthday party in Wayne County, Michigan, which includes Detroit, exposed the county's sheriff's office employees to COVID-19, according to ABC-TV affiliate WXYZ. Attended by both current and former sheriff's office employees, the party has been a March tradition for 20 years.

To date, at least 41 employees have tested positive for the virus, according to the news report, and one employee died last week, Commander Donafay Collins, 63, a 30-year veteran.

In Florida, the Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office said Tuesday that three deputies have tested positive and nearly 40 deputies are in quarantine. One deputy is in critical condition, but nearly all the isolated deputies are expected to resume work.

The San Diego Police Department announced Tuesday that it is closing down its police academy with at least 185 recruits for at least two weeks because of the coronavirus pandemic.

Police departments are also grappling with how to make arrests safely to protect themselves from suspects who might show COVID-19 symptoms.

Houston Police Chief Art Acevedo told the Post that three of his officers had tested positive for coronavirus after dealing with a suspect who displayed symptoms.

"You have to remember, as police officers . . . we can't walk around in biohazard suits," Tampa Police Chief Brian Dugan told the newspaper

"I don't think it's too far to say that officers are scared out there," said Sgt. Manny Ramirez, president of the Fort Worth Police Officers Association.

In Fort Worth, a third police officer who had worked in the same unit as the other officers with the virus has tested positive, police officials announced on Tuesday. The officer is in self-isolation at home, just like the other two.

Amid the nationwide coronavirus pandemic, police departments in several cities are taking precautions to prevent officers from being exposed to the virus.

In Austin, Texas, officers will no longer respond to crashes if the vehicles remain drivable and no one is injured. Police who detain people in Philadelphia do the paperwork and arrest later. In Oklahoma, the public is asked to walk outside if police show up. Dallas police are not responding in person to shoplifting, lost property or graffiti. Police in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, Nashville, Tennessee, Charleston, South Carolina, and Tampa, Florida, are taking more reports over the phone.