As more sailors on the USS Theodore Roosevelt test positive for coronavirus, the Navy announced the firing of the ship’s captain.

On Friday, 31% of the crew had been tested for COVID-19 and 114 sailors tested positive so far, said acting Navy Secretary Thomas Modly.

The ship has a crew of about 5,000 and pulled into Guam last weekend after sailors tested positive and were medically evacuated to Naval Hospital Guam.

At first, the Navy said sailors would remain pier side.

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USS Theodore Roosevelt Capt. Brett Crozier sent a letter to the Navy on Monday looking to evacuate the crew as cases of coronavirus infection increased.

"Decisive action" was required to prevent deaths from the coronavirus, Crozier wrote. The ship's close quarters prevented sailors from following guidelines to keep them safe.

Crozier’s letter was published by the San Francisco Chronicle on Wednesday, Guam time. On Friday morning, Modly announced Crozier was relieved of his duties.

Meanwhile, on Thursday, the first group of about 180 sailors from the aircraft carrier were moved to a hotel in Tumon, said Joint Region Marianas Commander Rear Adm. John Menoni.

Menoni said on Friday that another 300 to 400 more sailors will follow suit. All the sailors who are and will be transported off-base tested negative for the virus and are asymptomatic, Menoni said.

There have been seven hotels identified that fit criteria the Navy needs, according to Guam Hotel and Restaurant Association President Mary Rhodes.

Additionally, more than 1,000 USS Roosevelt sailors are off the ship in controlled locations on Naval Base Guam, Menoni added.

Sailors who tested positive had mild symptoms and as of Friday afternoon, none had been hospitalized. Modly also said some who were sick have recovered.

'Remain in quarantine'

“I want to reiterate the (Theodore Roosevelt) sailors staying in lodging are required by lawful order to remain in quarantine in their assigned rooms for the duration of the mandatory 14-day quarantine period,” Menoni said.

The sailors will be checked daily and military leadership will be at the lodging to ensure quarantine instructions are followed.

“When we move these sailors out in town, this is not a liberty tour for them. Their mission is to stay healthy and mission-ready,” Menoni said. “For the sailors who have been diagnosed with COVID-19, their mission is to get healthy.”

He previously said sailors won’t have contact with hotel staff.

If sailors in hotels show symptoms of COVID-19, they will be pulled out of the hotel, taken to Naval Hospital Guam to be evaluated and be tested and taken back to Naval Base Guam, according to Menoni.

“I also want to emphasize that although these sailors have negative COVID-19 tests, we’ll continue to conduct daily health checks to make doubly sure that we’re doing everything in our power to protect our military civilian team here on Guam and not contribute to the spread of COVID-9 and preserve the warfighting readiness of our force,” Menoni said.

Modly said on Friday there will be more positive COVID-19 cases from the Roosevelt. “It’ll probably in the hundreds,” he said.

Space for sailors

When the vessel docked, there were no beds and now, a week later, there are almost 3,000 beds for the crew, Modly told reporters at a press briefing. Creating available space for the sailors happened in a week, he said.

“That’s not because of this letter,” Modly said, referring to Crozier’s letter. “That’s because of stuff going on well before the letter was sent.”

Modly added the letter was sent via email and copied to 20 or 30 other people. The letter created the perception the Navy wasn’t on the job and created a degree of panic, he said.