Five more sailors aboard aircraft carrier test positive for coronavirus

Five sailors aboard the USS Theodore Roosevelt in the Pacific have tested positive for coronavirus after three other sailors on the aircraft carrier tested positive for the virus on Tuesday.

Naval officials told The Wall Street Journal that four of the eight sailors were transported to a medical facility in Guam and that the others would also be evacuated.

Officials also said that the Navy is working to identify others on the ship who could possibly be infected with COVID-19, with Adm. John Aquilino, commander of the Pacific Fleet, saying that they’re working “towards the goal of minimizing any additional transmission.”

The ship docked in Da Nang, Vietnam, two weeks ago, but acting Navy Secretary Thomas Modly noted that the sailors could have contracted COVID-19 from another source, as members of a flight crew had also visited the aircraft carrier.

Aquilino also said that because he was asymptomatic, he hasn’t been tested for the virus.

“I feel 100% fine,” Aquilino said. “My health is no different than anyone else’s.”

The three sailors to test positive for the virus on Tuesday were the first to test positive for COVID-19 while aboard a deployed military ship.

According to the Journal, over 200 service members have tested positive for the virus.