Second US Navy ship hit by major coronavirus outbreak

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A second US Navy ship has been hit by a major coronavirus outbreak, with at least 18 sailors aboard destroyer USS Kidd testing positive.

The US Navy confirmed on Friday that the destroyer would return to port after a sailor tested positive for Covid-19 and was medically evacuated from operations in the Eastern Pacific near Central America.

While the sailor was stable and receiving medical treatment in a facility in San Antonio, Texas, the Navy is expecting additional cases among the crew of about 330. A total of 18 have so far tested positive and more testing is taking place.

The USS Kidd is part of Donald Trump's deployment of warships and aircraft to the Caribbean and Eastern Pacific to fight drug cartels and prevent corrupt actors like Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro from exploiting the pandemic to smuggle drugs into the US.

"The first patient transported is already improving and will self-isolate. We are taking every precaution to ensure we identify, isolate, and prevent any further spread onboard the ship," said Rear Admiral Don Gabrielson, commander US Naval Forces Southern Command/US 4th Fleet.

"Our medical team continues coordinating with the ship and our focus is the safety and well-being of every sailor."

An eight-person medical team has been dispatched to the ship to provide medical care to the sailors, conduct contact tracing, isolate individuals exposed to the virus and work to mitigate further spread.

Pentagon spokesman Jonathan Hoffman said during a press briefing that the ship was preparing to return to port where it would be cleaned.

"They will remove a portion of the crew from the ship. And work to get everybody back to health and get the ship back to sea," Mr Hoffman said.

The USS Kidd is the second ship to be hit by a coronavirus outbreak while at sea after the aircraft carrier USS Theodore Roosevelt.

The outbreak led to the firing of the ship's commanding officer Captain Brett Crozier, who wrote a letter imploring the Navy for help with the outbreak. Then-acting Navy Secretary Thomas Modly fired Captain Crozier, and then resigned himself after giving a highly-critical speech aboard the ship.

Defense Secretary Mark Esper is expected to be briefed on the results of an investigation into the incident on Friday. Navy chiefs have recommended that Capt Crozier be reinstated.

Mr Hoffman said that Mr Esper is generally inclined to support navy leadership and their decisions, but that he is going into it with an open mind.

"Later today Secretary Esper will meet with the Chief of Naval Operations Admiral Gilday to discuss the results of the vice chief of naval operations Admiral Burke's investigation into the circumstances surrounding the Covid outbreak on the Teddy Roosevelt," Mr Hoffman said.

"Once he is briefed we will see where that takes us."

The Navy said that 840 sailors from the aircraft carrier have tested positive for coronavirus as of Thursday, with four sailors being treated for symptoms at US Naval Hospital Guam.

They have also moved 4,234 of the 4,800-person crew ashore to Guam, where the ship is docked during the outbreak.