What You Need to Know About Saturday’s Mask Drive and Drop-off
Gov. Tim Walz Orders Homemade Mask Drives
Minnesota is calling all crafters, sewers and creatives to support those working and living in congregate living facilities such as nursing homes.
Hundreds of fire departments will be holding homemade mask drives on Saturday, April 25, between 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.
This is part of a statewide push from Gov. Tim Walz. All 775 fire departments in the state of Minnesota are expected to participate in the collection.
In a press release last Saturday, Gov. Walz said, “While homemade masks will not replace personal protective equipment, they go a long way in preventing the wearer’s germs from infecting others. I am asking Minnesota’s crafters, sewers, and creatives to step up and help out their community.”
Local Fire Departments Prepare for Collections
Maple Grove Fire Chief Tim Bush said there will be containers outside the fire departments where residents can drop off their homemade masks. The station will then deliver the masks to local congregate living facilities for their employees and residents to wear.
“We’ve been working with Hennepin County Emergency Management and working with Aspen Waste Management, who are donating 60 gallon containers that have the lid, in case it rains,” Bush said.
Bush said there won’t be anyone staffed at the station to receive the donations.
“One of the things we’ve been really concerned about is keeping our firefighters safe. All stations are closed for public,” he said.
Golden Valley residents are encouraged to drop off masks at any of their three fire departments.
Robbinsdale officials said they will have two volunteers collecting masks on Saturday at their fire department. Local chamber volunteers will be helping too.
The guidelines on creating face masks can be found on the MN Dept. of Health site.
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