County’s $7M in PPE left outside, damaged by California rain

REDWOOD CITY, Calif. (AP) — About $7 million worth of surplus personal protective equipment and cleaning supplies, purchased by a Northern California county earlier in the coronavirus pandemic, was damaged in recent rainstorms after it was left outside for months. San Mateo County officials acknowledged the disaster Friday following a KGO news report that showed video of scores of sodden boxes outside the San Mateo Event Center in the San Francisco Bay Area. San Mateo County, south of San Francisco, is among the wealthiest counties in the nation. Workers are inspecting the damaged boxes to see if the items inside will still be usable.