SHIP OUTBREAK to get deeper look.

Navy chief notes ‘questions’ after call to reinstate captain

WASHINGTON — The Navy will open a full investigation of the coronavirus outbreak aboard an aircraft carrier, acting Navy secretary James McPherson said Wednesday, days after the service’s top officer recommended the reinstatement of a captain who raised concerns about the handling of the issue.

McPherson said Wednesday that after carefully reviewing a preliminary inquiry into what happened, he has “unanswered questions” that “can only be answered by a deeper review.”

“This investigation will build on the good work of the initial inquiry to provide a more fulsome understanding of the sequence of events, actions, and decisions of the chain of command surrounding the COVID-19 outbreak aboard USS Theodore Roosevelt,” McPherson said in a statement.

The statement did detail McPherson’s questions, and Navy officials did not offer clarification Wednesday morning. It was not immediately clear who will lead the investigation for Adm. Mike Gilday, the chief of naval operations.

The move announced Wednesday effectively delays a decision on whether to go ahead with a Navy recommendation that Capt. Brett Crozier be restored to command of the Roosevelt, which has been docked in Guam for weeks. Crozier was fired after pleading for urgent Navy action to protect his crew.

The expanded investigation is expected to examine communication and leadership actions in the Navy chain of command in the Pacific, to include events before the initial virus outbreak in late March, officials said.

This likely includes the decision to make a port visit to Da Nang, Vietnam, which has been cited as a possible source of the infection aboard the Roosevelt. That decision was made by Adm. Phil Davidson, who as commander of U.S. Indo-Pacific Command is in charge of all forces in that region.

Navy officials also have said the outbreak could have originated with a resupply flight to the carrier.

As the outbreak spread through the crew last month, Crozier, the commanding officer, sent an email to three admirals with a memo attached raising concerns as the ship arrived in Guam for quarantining, testing and cleaning.

“I fully realize that I bear responsibility for not demanding more decisive action the moment we pulled in, but at this point my only priority is the continued well-being of the crew and embarked staff,” Crozier wrote in the March 30 email, later obtained by The Washington Post. “… I believe if there is ever a time to ask for help it is now regardless of the impact on my career.”

The memo attached to the email leaked to the media and was initially published in the San Francisco Chronicle a day later. Crozier wrote in it that “decisive action is required.”

Acting Navy secretary Thomas Modly removed Crozier from his job April 2, saying the captain had not safeguarded his message to senior Navy officials and had shown poor judgment. Modly resigned on April 7, after traveling from Washington to Guam and delivering a speech over the Theodore Roosevelt’s loudspeaker in which he insulted Crozier and lectured the crew for supporting him.

Gilday recommended that Crozier be reinstated last week, after the preliminary inquiry. But McPherson and Defense Secretary Mark Esper sought more information before making a decision.

Crozier has been quarantined off the ship since his firing and is recovering after testing positive for the virus. The decision to extend the investigation for another month keeps him in limbo.

For now, he is assigned to the commander of Naval Air Forces, Vice Adm. DeWolfe Miller. If he is not reinstated to command before the Roosevelt leaves Guam, he likely would fly to San Diego to await the results of the investigation.

President Donald Trump initially criticized Crozier for sending the memo and email to Navy officials but softened his tone. Trump said he did not “want to destroy somebody for having a bad day,” and that he might intervene in the case.

Nearly 1,000 sailors from the Roosevelt have contracted the coronavirus and one has died. The outbreak is the most severe in the U.S. military, which is seeking to balance a need to protect troops while also maintaining U.S. defenses.

In recent days a second ship, the USS Kidd, reported a coronavirus outbreak at sea. It pulled into port at San Diego on Tuesday with at least 64 sailors infected, reflecting more efficient action by the Navy to address the threat posed by the virus in close quarters.