A squad of police officers has been set up to deal with coronavirus deaths in Greater Manchester. Formerly GMP’s transport unit, the team of about 60 cops will be given face masks and other protective equipment to make sure they don’t catch the virus with the number of fatalities expected to soar over the coming weeks.
The new unit was revealed today by Chief Constable Ian Hopkins in an interview with the M.E.N. about the developing crisis. He also confirmed: *More than 1,000 (ten per cent) of his staff are off because they are self-isolating or they have the disease. *Up to 4,000 front line cops will get ‘basic’ face masks but he’s demanding better ones from the Home Secretary *Police will patrol pharmacies, supermarkets and open spaces. *