Helping others on the front line stay healthy

IDAHO FALLS, Idaho (KIFI/KIDK) - These vital truck drivers are carrying a heavier than normal load when bringing us our supplies.

Their work requires them to be in some of COVID-19's worst impacted areas.

"We've been trying to get together as much stuff as we could give to our drivers over the last few weeks," Western Transport Operations Manger Adam Hanson said. "I was on the phone with one the other night, he can't find hand sanitizer. They can't find Lysol. They can't find basic disinfectants and cleaners. To be able to supply these people with these things is tremendous."

That's where these emergency kits come in, from Mountain View Hospital. The staff made them themselves.

Brian Ziel explains how they got involved and felt the need to donate at such a crucial time.

"As this was starting to ramp up Marion Walker our Director of Nursing was reading an article on how the truck drivers are in and out of these areas just as much as the healthcare workers," Ziel said. "The thought is they'll be coming back into our communities and we want to protect them and their family as much as we can. Obviously all we can do to protect them will slow the spread of the virus."

They also included a mask for the drivers to wear. But, it's not the kind surgeons wear that's in short supply.

"So the masks that we included today, we wish we were able to donate more but we hope the one that we are donating to them will help out as much as possible and these are the kind of masks we'd be giving out to our patients," Ziel said.

The drivers often spend 12 hours on the road. They need to stay healthy or items will not be replenished in our stores.

"There's no products if these drivers get sick. It's not just our company it's every driver in the US. They're driving 11 hours a day hundreds of miles on average. They've gotta stay healthy," Hanson said.

So if they stay healthy, we are all a little better off the next time we are at a store and can find what we need.