Crew isolation urged for virus-hit warship
WASHINGTON — The captain of a U.S. navy aircraft carrier facing a growing outbreak of the coronavirus is asking for permission to isolate the bulk of his 5,000 crew members on shore, which would take the warship out of duty in an effort to save lives.
In a memo to navy leaders, the captain of the USS Theodore Roosevelt said the spread of the disease is ongoing and accelerating, and said that removing all but 10 per cent of the crew is a “necessary risk” in order to stop the spread of the virus. The ship is docked in Guam.
U.S. navy leaders on Tuesday were scrambling to determine how to best respond to the extraordinary request as dozens of crew members tested positive.
“We are not at war. Sailors do not need to die. If we do not act now, we are failing to properly take care of our most trusted asset, our sailors,” said its Capt. Brett Crozier, in a memo obtained by the Associated Press.
A U.S. navy official said Crozier alerted commanders on Sunday evening of the continuing challenges in isolating the virus. The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss internal deliberations, said Crozier wants more isolated housing for the crew and that navy leadership is reviewing options to ensure the health and safety of the crew.
Acting Navy Secretary Thomas Modly told CNN that they are doing the best they can to “adjust on the fly” and take care of sailors on the carrier.
“The key is to make sure that we can get a set of crew members that can maintain all those critical functions on the ship, make sure that they’re clean, and then get them back on while we clean the ship and get the other crew members off,” he said.
The carrier, like other navy ships, is vulnerable to infectious disease spread, given its close quarters. The ship is more than 1,000 feet long; sailors are spread out across a labyrinth of decks linked by narrow corridors. Enlisted sailors and officers live in separate quarters, but grab their food from crowded buffet lines and eat at tables joined end-to-end.