By Gary Jenkins
BAPA Community Safety Liaison
As we begin another month of the City of Chicago’s stay at home order it’s good to review some important safety guidelines. Following common sense health and safety precautions is paramount to each of us for coming out on the other side of this pandemic in a better place. Stay home, save lives. If you must go out, wear a mask, exercise social distancing (at least six feet apart where possible), if you need to come together with others do not congregate in a groups of more than ten and maintain social distancing at all times, and, most importantly, wash your hands thoroughly and frequently.
We must also be wary of the potential fraud and scams related to COVID–19 government payments to both individuals and businesses. Officials at both the FBI and IRS warn that scam artists are seeking to take advantage of unsuspecting citizens. BAPA’s COVID–19 information page at BAPA.org has links to access to the websites you need to get current information from local and federal authorities. Always remember to know with whom you are sharing your information, and if the deal sounds too good and too easy to be true, it usually is.
As the weather begins to feel much more like spring, an understandable urge to break from your COVID confinement will come over you; I get it! The streets are not as busy as usual, so please remember to remain aware of your surroundings and call 911 if you see anyone or anything that might not seem just right.
Finally, with the increase in purchasing household cleaning solutions to prevent spreading the coronavirus the CDC has issued a notice that the calls to the poison control hotline have increased. The CDC warns consumers to read the labels carefully of all cleaning solutions that you might use around the house. In case you have questions, the poison control hotline is 1-800-222-1222 and general information is available at poison.org.
