Coronavirus: Neighbors help Texas nurse make homemade masks

SAN ANTONIO — A Texas nurse is getting some neighborly help as the supply of masks begins to dwindle in the San Antonio area.

Jill Folker, a nurse at Texas Oncology, went on social media and asked people who knew how to make face masks to create some for her and her staff, KSAT reported.

“We were told yesterday to come up with inventive ways of making homemade masks in case it gets really bad,” Folkert told the television station.

>> Coronavirus checklist: 100-plus disinfectants that may kill coronavirus on surfaces

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention website, homemade masks such as bandanas and scarves can be used for the care of patients “as a last resort ... Caution should be exercised when considering this option.”

Folkert said her request was enthusiastically received, and more than 20 masks have already been made, KSAT reported.

San Antonio residents Tanya Taylor and Kim Gonzales said making the masks was a good way to teach children about COVID-19 and also a practical skill by sewing.

“Nobody knows what to do, but this is the best thing we can do,” Taylor told KSAT.

>> Coronavirus symptoms: What you need to know

The masks can be washed and sterilized by hospital staff members, the television station reported.

Gonzales said making the masks is not difficult and is a great lesson for children who are forced to stay home from school.

“It’s gotten fairly simple. If our third-, fourth- and seventh-grade girls can do it with guidance, I think anybody can do it,” Gonzales told KSAT.

>> Coronavirus: Know the facts directly from the CDC