Four Contra Costa County fire district employees test positive for COVID-19

Four Contra Costa County Fire Protection District employees have tested positive for the COVID-19 coronavirus, the district announced Wednesday.

Eighteen Con Fire employees were tested after showing symptoms such as fever, cough and sore throats, but 12 were confirmed negative while two others are isolated and off-duty while awaiting test results.

The four employees who tested positive are off-duty and awaiting a return to duty based on established federal guidelines.

The fire district said the four employees represent about 1 percent of their workforce, so their positive tests do not have any adverse impact on the district's operations.

"Con Fire is committed to continuing our ability to deliver emergency services to the communities we serve throughout the duration of this evolving health crisis," Fire Chief Lewis Broschard III said in a news release.