A collaborative effort between several organizations has resulted in thousands of dollars worth of personal protective equipment successfully donated to law enforcement agencies throughout the area.

Thanks to the Jacksonville State Center for Applied Forensics, Poarch Band of Creek Indians, and the 7th Judicial District Attorney’s Office, law enforcement personnel in Cherokee County and surrounding areas will be equipped with N95 masks and hand sanitizer.

A grant was awarded to the university on behalf of the Poarch Band of Creek Indians for the purchase of 3,000 masks, and 85 gallons of hand sanitizer, created by the Back Forty Beer Company in Gadsden.

The masks and hand sanitizer will be distributed through efforts from the East Metro Alabama Crime Center.

Agencies across Cherokee County have all received a supply of hand sanitizer.

With law enforcement constantly having to come into contact with people daily, no agency can afford to lose massive numbers of personnel to COVID-19 or be quarantined for 14-days. District Attorney Brian McVeigh says 5,000 more masks are expected to be delivered to the area to also be donated to law enforcement agencies in East Alabama.