The Navy says an outbreak of COVID-19 infections aboard an aircraft carrier in the Pacific has forced it to divert to Guam so that all 5,000 aboard will undergo testing.
The acting secretary of the Navy, Thomas Modly, told reporters the sailors were aboard the USS Theodore Roosevelt, which remains “operationally capable.”
Even so, other officials said the number of infected sailors has risen sharply, from three reported initially to “dozens” as of Thursday.
Modly said the carrier, which is the first U.S. Navy ship to have a reported outbreak while at sea, had about 800 COVID-19 test kits aboard and more were being delivered.
He said the initially reported cases were sailors with relatively mild symptoms.
The Navy said earlier this week that the U.S.S. Theodore Roosevelt’s most recent port call was in Vietnam.
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