Back to Work— Local Farmers & Farmworkers Dawn Respirators in the Field During 2020 Wildfires
During the first few days of of the 2020 Oregon wildfires, all production at Gathering Together Farm ceased to a halt for the rest of the week as workers stayed home for their safety. Respirators for the entire crew were miraculously sourced over the weekend and by Monday, September 14th, 2020, we were back to work.
In our corner of the Willamette Valley, the smoke continued to remain at dangerous enough levels to require the respirators for another week, but we were able to harvest produce for weekend markets. By the weekend, air quality was below hazardous levels, and farmers markets were able to be safely held.
I don’t think any of us will ever forget the smell of the silicon from wearing those respirators, or the taste of your sweat building up within the mouthpiece. Being difficult to take big breaths, it was important to move slowly and not get too out of breath. But there was a stark difference if you didn’t wear them, it didn’t take long for a sore throat and head ache to set in.
A big thanks to all farmworkers who probably never stopped working despite the wildfires, and many of whom weren’t provided with adequate Personal Protective Equipment. We knew that despite our hard work, we were still some of the lucky ones.
