Page 22 - Bernardon_Community - Fire, Life Safety, & Emergency Services_SOQ 10.2023

www.bernardon.com

and inspired to contribute so greatly with the
anxiety of the coronavirus pandemic impacting
family, work, and social life?

We suggest Companies should start by building
the confidence of the Company itself. A plan
needs to be created to prioritize the interaction
and activity that is most critical to the delivery
of emergency services during fire and non-fire
emergencies. Additionally, public engagement
at the station should be terminated until such
time that we are clear of contagion. This move
is to control the unpredictable culture within

Bernardon recently completed the design
of the Broomall Fire Company in Broomall,
Pennsylvania. Care was taken to separate hot
zones from clean zones with great success.
“The separation between the operations side
and the administration side is a real positive,”
said Jim Capuzzi, President of Broomall Fire
Company. However, the invisible threat of
the coronavirus is now impacting those clean
zones we so diligently isolated. Day rooms and
common kitchen space intended to be used by
active members of the company are now more
vulnerable to hosting viral contagions than
cancer-causing carcinogens. Yet these spaces
are vital to maintaining on-site presence of the
career staff and volunteers. the station and provides more confidence to the
men and women responsible for maintaining its
Creating healthy indoor environments improves health and cleanliness in accordance with the
the readiness and response of a Company by CDC Guidance for Firefighters and EMS and
enhancing comfort, encouraging interaction, other workplace guidelines.
and reinforcing fellowship. These design
attributes invite the volunteers and staff to be Do the social distancing restrictions translate
active and present, thus being readily available into the removal of social spaces that foster
to respond to a variety of calls. How will these mission and good spirit? Should the elimination
courageous men and women remain engaged of training and conference spaces within these

BERNARDON | Fire and EMS Station Design: Making Accommodations for First Responders in a Pandemic Page 2