First coronavirus cases inside the Pentagon reported - Air Force airman, contractor
The Pentagon has reported its first two coronavirus cases inside the building, a defense contractor and an active duty Air Force service member, an Air Force official told McClatchy.
The Air Force defense contractor entered the Pentagon on March 2, then attended a symposium at Andrews Air Force Base. A few days later the contractor had symptoms of COVID-19 and then tested positive for coronavirus, an Air Force official said on condition of anonymity.
“The contractor worked at the Total Force Integration Symposium at Joint Base Andrews, Md., March 3-6. The individual did not have symptoms during the event. The Air Force sent an email to attendees informing them of the positive test,” an Air Force statement issued later said.
The second case involves an active duty member of the Air Force who was in the Pentagon on Monday for meetings and has tested positive for the virus and has since self-quarantined at home, the Air Force official said.
That service member works for the Defense Health Agency and “was last in the Pentagon on March 16 for less than an hour and has since received medical treatment and self-quarantined at home,” the Air Force statement said.
The Air Force is now working with military health officials to conduct tracing and notification to people who may have come in contact with both cases.
The Air Force has identified what rooms the personnel were in and is in the process of conducting a deep cleaning of those areas, the official said.
The Pentagon at full capacity has more than 22,000 people working in it every day, but due to the coronavirus the vast majority of those personnel are now working remotely.
This story was originally published March 20, 2020 at 1:54 PM.
