Hopkinton, Richmond answer COVID-19 call by donating dozens of ventilators

HOPKINTON, R.I. (WLNE) — The towns of Hopkinton and Richmond have donated over 25 sleep apnea machines to their local fire department, to be turned into ventilators for use in hospitals across the state.

The Hope Valley Fire Department has been collecting CPAP and BiPAP machines for one week, and has been pleasantly surprised by the donations from the community.

“I thought maybe we’d get 5 or 6 machines,” said Fire Chief, Justin Lee. “But to see 25 — and they’re still coming in daily, its amazing.”

The department will take the machines over to the University of Rhode Island, where a team of 100 engineers and PhD students will wash and re-furbish them to be used as ventilators by COVID-19 patients.

“Our community is really coming together to help out,” said Lee.

If you have an old sleep apnea machine you’d like to donate, visit www.ventilatorproject.org for more information.

(C) WLNE-TV // ABC 6  2020