US Navy evacuates sailors from Roosevelt after 93 test positive for coronavirus

The US Navy on April 1 said that it is evacuating personnel from USS Theodore Roosevelt after numerous sailors tested positive for coronavirus. Acting Navy Secretary Thomas B. Modly in a statement informed that the nuclear-powered warship has 93 positive cases on it, with 86 of those service members exhibiting symptoms and seven having no symptoms. According to the statement, 593 have tested negative on the ship out of the 1,300 that have been tested so far and some of the results are yet to come.

Read: Taiwan Announces $35 Bn COVID-19 Stimulus Package, Says Will Donate 10 Mn Masks

According to the Acting Secretary, the US Navy has already evacuated 1,000 personnel and expects to have about 2,700 of them off the ship. Additional space in Guam was sought immediately, and progress is being made, Modly reportedly said. As per reports, prior to the deployment of the ship the World Health Organisation (WHO) had identified fewer than 20 COVID-19 cases. The Navy has accelerated testing and is deep-cleaning all the spaces on the ship, the statement read. 

Read: Chinese Man Builds Pod With Air Purification System To Protect Infant From COVID-19

"We are providing the commanding officer what he has requested, and we are doing our best to accelerate the pace wherever we can. Like the rest of the country and the world, we are learning more about stopping the spread of this virus each day," the acting secretary said in a statement.   

Read: COVID-19: Donald Trump Asked To Suspend H-1B Visa Programme Amid Crisis

Coronavirus outbreak

COVID-19 has claimed more than 47,000 lives across the world and has infected over 9,37,000 people globally since it first broke out in December 2019. China was the most affected country until last week before Italy and Spain surpassed it to record the most number of deaths anywhere in the world due to COVID-19. The United States and France are on the verge of overtaking China in terms of the number of deaths recorded in these countries. The virus is believed to have originated from a seafood market in China's Wuhan city, the epicentre of the disease, where animals were reportedly being traded illegally.

Read: UP: Newborns Named 'Lockdown' And 'Corona' Amid Pandemic Crisis

(Image Credit: US Defense/Webpage)