Certain essential workers in Illinois who believe they contracted COVID-19 on the job will now be automatically covered by workers' compensation. Gov. J.B. Pritzker made the announcement Monday as the state reported that new cases of COVID-19 in Illinois increased by more than 1,000 for the eighth straight day, jumping 1,173 to a new total of 22,025, according to the Illinois Department of Health. Deaths rose 74 to a total of 794. Eighty-seven of Illinois' 102 counties have reported cases. More than 105,000 people have been tested. Illinoisans injured on the job normally must prove their illness or injury was directly caused by their duties. But in an emergency ruling Monday, the Illinois Workers' Compensation Commission ordered that "COVID-19 first responder(s) and front-line worker(s)" who say they contracted the illness because of their job will automatically be presumed to be telling the truth so they can receive workers' compensation benefits.  

PHOTOS: Hundreds of Chicago Fire Department personnel and law enforcement officers stood more than 6 feet apart on North Pulaski Road and saluted Monday morning as the hearse carrying firefighter Mario Araujo traveled to a Northwest Side cemetery. Araujo's funeral, at Theis-Gorski Funeral Home in the Irving Park neighborhood, was attended by only "a very limited number" of family members, according to the fire department. Hundreds of Araujo's colleagues and supporters waited outside the funeral home and eventually joined in the procession to Montrose Cemetery, where a brief ceremony, featuring bagpipes and a 21-gun salute, took place in front of the crematorium. Araujo's mother was presented with the Chicago flag that draped her son's casket. Araujo, 49, joined the fire department in October 2003 and spent most of his career on Truck 25, which operates out of Engine 102 in Rogers Park on the North Side.  

Mundelein's police officers, firefighters and public works employees won't be eligible for extra paid time off if infected with the COVID-19 virus despite a recent federal law creating that benefit for American workers. In a meeting held remotely Monday night, the village board voted to exempt those workers from the benefits of the Families First Coronavirus Response Act, which was signed into law last month. Many other suburbs have taken the same step. The federal law applies to employers with fewer than 500 employees. It gives full-time employees up to 80 additional hours of paid sick leave relating to the coronavirus, through the end of the year. It also allows for up to 12 extra weeks of unpaid family leave to care for children under 18, funds 14-day paid leave for workers directly affected by the pandemic and other provisions.  

The Alton Fire Department on Monday took delivery on its first brand new firetruck since 2010. The truck is a custom-built model ferom Precision Fire Apparatus of Camdenton, Missouri. The truck delivered Monday was the first of two new trucks that were ordered by the department about a year ago. Before the new trucks were ordered, the city had purchased used trucks. They were rotated in and out of the city garage, depending on their needed repairs. It was time for new fire trucks, according to Alton Deputy Fire Chief Brad Sweetman. "It's just a basic workhorse," Sweetman said. He said the truck cost $445,000, but the city ordered features it needed and declined features it does not need. The new truck includes a 750-gallon tank and a hydraulic generator. It has the ability to pump 1,500 gallons of water per minute and can carry four firefighters in its cab.  

Battling COVID-19 requires an elaborate armor. First responders don masks, shields, respirators, and other personal protective equipment to protect themselves from the fast-spreading airborne virus. A staple protective gear is the isolation gown. Made from waterproof material and typically designed with long sleeves and snap closures, they protect health care workers while treating patients from splashes and sprays. According to a 2015 survey by the US National Health Institute, isolation gowns are the second-most used piece of PPE after medical gloves. Amid the coronavirus pandemic, these gowns are in such short supply that the US Centers for Disease Control (CDC) has recently recommended tactics to extend the use of the typically single-use coverings. Responding to the shortage, automaker Ford has started producing hospital-grade isolation gowns with the fabric used in its airbags.  

With a growing number of coronavirus cases, the Bossier City Fire Department is making new use of machines its had for the past six years to decontaminate the back of its ambulances in mere minutes. "We have one at every fire station, a few reserves and one on every ambulance," Fire Chief Brad Zagone said of the gear. About 40 positive COVID-19 patients have been transported via BCFD ambulances. And now, because it has this equipment, the department disinfects the back of its ambulances after every call. "The ambulances can take it with them so when they got a call and drop the patient off at the hospital, they can then turn this on and decontaminate the ambulance so they don't transfer any germs or viruses to the next patient they see. "It's a great asset. A great thing to have."  

With a deadline drawing near, the COVID-19 pandemic has stalled the city's firefighter union short of its goal in a petition drive aimed at forcing a new employment contract. The firefighters need signatures from 5% of the city's registered voters by May 28 to add a proposal to November's general election ballot. If they are successful, residents will vote whether to change the city charter to require negotiators to accept binding third-party arbitration. The hope is to break through an impasse that dates to 2018 and finally achieve an agreeable new contract. About 1,000 qualified signatures are required, but the union's goal is at least 2,000, said Texarkana, Texas, Fire Department Driver-Engineer Scott Robertson, president of International Association of Fire Fighters Local 367. The city secretary could disqualify some signatures during the petition's certification process, so the union wants as many as it can get.  

The lights and sirens Monday night in Tryon weren't for an emergency call. They were a tribute to a local fire chief and hero. A fitting farewell for Tryon Fire Chief Janes "Tank" Waters was complicated by restrictions in place because of COVID-19. But Tryon made it work. But it was strict coronavirus orders from Gov. Roy Cooper that had cars lined up in front of the fire station downtown on Monday. One by one, they offered their names for the funeral home guest book. Social distancing meant they couldn't even touch the pen. But they were able to pause and offer a farewell wave, then move along. "This was not a good, good hand we were dealt, but we're doing the best we can, while still honoring that memory," Polk County Sheriff's Office spokesman John Sauvé said.  

Municipalities across Washington are facing some difficult budget challenges during the COVID-19 pandemic. The mayor in the City of Tukwila said administration estimates $6.1 million in lost revenue by the end of May. David Cline, City of Tukwila Administrator, said officials will continue discussing safe and feasible options with labor partners towards the best solution for the community. "We want to be proactive. We care about this community, we want to make sure that we're making good decisions that our mayor and council are well informed," said Cline. Cline said the city has already seen a $4 million loss of revenue since the beginning of the outbreak. "A lot of the economic activity is shut down. We'll be losing sales tax and admissions tax and business tax and gambling tax," said Cline. In March, Mayor Allan Ekberg announced a five-part plan to help balance the budget during the health crisis.