City takes delivery of 3-million surgical masks

Torontosun.com
April 22, 2020
Bryan Passifiume

Workers in city shelters and long-term care homes can breathe a little easier.

On Tuesday, the city took delivery of a shipment of three million surgical masks, bolstering Toronto’s personal protective equipment (PPE) stockpiles.

The level-2 surgical masks, ordered from a Canadian supplier in mid-March, have passed inspection by city staff and will be distributed to shelters, long-term care facilities and retirement homes.

Earlier this month, an order of 62,000 defective Chinese-made surgical masks were recalled by the city after users reported them tearing as soon as they were donned.

Since the beginning of the outbreak, sourcing large quantities of reliable PPE has been an incredible challenge.

Prior to this shipment, the city only had about a 52-day supply of surgical masks at current consumption levels.

The new masks, the city says, represents a little over four months of supply.