NIAGARA FALLS, N.Y. — On Monday 2 On Your Side spoke with a Niagara Falls native, who used to work at Niagara Falls Memorial Hospital as a nurse, and is now in New York City caring for COVID-19 patients.
In Manhattan, there are more than 18,000 confirmed coronavirus cases.
Rycky Ann Pera has been caring for some of them as nurse at Mount Sinai Beth Israel hospital.
She says she's been there two weeks and has had some good days, but sadly a lot of bad ones as well.
"I come back to this hotel room and cry lots of days," Pera said.
She says recently she learned of the hospital's outdoor morgue truck.
"I honestly was in disbelief," Pera said, "because we had a patient pass and the nurses that work there regularly they were discussing if the patient was to go to the in-hospital morgue or if they were going to the morgue truck and I looked at them in shock."
A stark difference from just a couple years ago, when Rycky Ann was a nurse at Niagara Falls Memorial.
She moved to Florida to continue her nursing career.
But, because of the coronavirus, she says her hours were cut at the hospital she was working at.
"I kept watching and watching and hearing about it on the news and the longer we sat without working I'm like I felt compelled I need to do something," Pera said.
Rycky Ann says she contacted a healthcare staffing agency, which placed her at Mt. Sinai.
REPORTER: What's your sense as to where we're at with the crisis?
"From what the people here are telling me, that it was a living, breathing nightmare a month ago. They are saying it is calming down, but it's nowhere near the end yet," Pera said.
REPORTER: What's your message to Western New Yorkers out here?
"Don't fight the quarantine. It's in effect for a reason. Stay home because you don't want to end up like it is here," Pera said.
She says she's taking care of her own health with vitamins, and layers of personal protective equipment.
She says her contract at Mt. Sinai goes to the end of May and it's possible she'll continue on at another hospital after that.
