Truckload of nearly 10,000 highly-coveted respirator masks arrives at UMC & El Paso Children’s Hospital

EL PASO, Texas -- The N95 respirator mask is in short supply amid high demand at hospitals across the nation and globally due to the coronavirus outbreak, and Borderland medical facilities have been no exception to dealing with the shortage.

But University Medical Center of El Paso and El Paso Children’s Hospital just received a generous donation from Marathon Petroleum -- a truckload of 9,600 N95 respirator masks for the hospital staffs.

The donation was secured through the COVID-19 Compassionate Care Fund, a new program set up by the UMC Foundation to support healthcare during the virus crisis. (Get details on the fund at umcfoundationelpaso.org.)

"We listened to what our healthcare workers on the front lines said they will need in the coming weeks, and the pandemic plan our company has in place allowed us to be able to make this donation swiftly," said VJ Smith, a manager for Marathon Petroleum's operations in El Paso.

He added, "We hope this donation will make everyone’s job safer as we all stand together in facing this unprecedented event.”

UMC's President Jacob Cintron expressed his gratitude as his medical staff and the entire community confronts the "unprecedented uncertainty when it comes to COVID-19."

"We are reminded again why we are ‘El Paso Strong.’ We can depend on each other, especially in times of crisis," he said.