Tuesday morning nearly 25 percent of the 2,218 officers employed by the Memphis Police Department were reportedly at home, participating in a work stoppage known as the Blue Flu , reports the Commercial Appeal .
Since June 30, the number of officers out sick has grown drastically from 71 officers out to the current 552, which accounts for 24.8 of the police force, according to Memphis police spokeswoman Sgt. Karen Rudolph.