Santa Clarita is joining cities around the world in preparing to fight an Ebola outbreak, after news of America’s first reported case was announced Tuesday. 

Enviro Safety, which has offices in Valencia, sells safety supplies to places all around the world, including African nations where the Ebola outbreak began, said Kevin Hill, vice president of technology and marketing at Enviro Safety.

“We are protecting customers from chemicals and hazardous materials,” Hill said. “We supply quite a few groups providing aid in areas around the world. With the Ebola outbreak, we have provided supplies in United States and Africa to help first responders and hospital personnel protect themselves from patients who may be infected with virus.”

Nearly 100 people might have come into contact with Thomas Eric Duncan, the first reported U.S. Ebola patient or one of his family members before he was hospitalized, said Dallas County health officials Thursday in an NBC News story.

More than 3,000 people have already died from the disease, according to NBC News.

“We’ve been seeing people ordering from all walks of life,” Hill said. “Right now, we’re seeing activity around nation with concentration on Texas for suits, gloves, masks and boots. We are seeing people from Texas ordering quite a bit, not just first responders but individuals, as well.”

Enviro Safety sells safety items including clothing, gloves, respirators, hearing, head and eye protection and first aid kits. The company has been in business for more than 10 years, with their Santa Clarita office being open for the last two.

“I think it’s smart to prepare, not only to prevent disease but for disaster because, heaven forbid something should happen, there may not be any supplies attainable,” Hill said. “For Santa Clarita, people should have an earthquake kit because you will need some supplies to carry you for three or four days when services are not there.”

Hill wants people to understand how disease is spread, how to avoid infection and what to should there be suspicion of infection.

The idea isn’t to incite fear, it’s to create awareness of the need for preparation, Hill said, whether it’s for disease or disaster.

The one constant Hill hears from health officials around the world is “education is the safest way to prevent disease,” he said.

“It’s much easier to reduce the number of cases by making people aware with information from the CDC and World Health to educate themselves about what the disease is,” he said, “and how to take action and be prudent so the situation doesn’t get out of hand.”

Photos courtesy of NBC News and Enviro Safety.