RIVERSIDE COUNTY, California -- A Riverside County sheriff's deputy has died from complications of the coronavirus, the latest sign of how law enforcement is being hit hard by the outbreak.
The department tweeted Thursday that Deputy Terrell Young was its first member to succumb to the virus. Young served in the department for 15 years.
Law enforcement personnel are among more than 200 people who have died of the coronavirus in the state. A Santa Rosa police detective died last week.
Since the outbreak began, the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department has sent 209 employees home to quarantine because of exposure to the virus.
The LAPD continues to test more of its 13,000 employees, and more than 30 have tested positive for COVID-19. The department is now taking the temperatures of officers as they arrive for their shifts.
"We are taking every step to ensure officers' health," said Assistant Chief Horace Frank, who noted that anyone with a fever will be sent home immediately and directed to get medical treatment.
Department roll calls are now conducted with officers spaced far apart to ensure social distancing. Those with even slight signs of illness have been ordered to stay home, Frank said.
Work spaces are now frequently sanitized, and officers are equipped with N95 masks and gloves and goggles to use in the field if needed.
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