This post has been updated to correct the deployment date of USS Milwaukee (LCS-5). It departed Florida on Dec 14.
USS Milwaukee (LCS-5) is in port after sailors aboard the Littoral Combat Ship tested positive for COVID-19, the Navy announced on Friday.
Milwaukee is now in port at Naval Station Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, after an unspecified variant of the COVID-19 virus infected the crew.
“The crew is 100 percent immunized and all COVID-19 positive sailors are isolated onboard and away from crew members. A portion of those infected have exhibited mild symptoms,” U.S. 4th Fleet spokeswoman Cmdr. Katherine Meadows said in a Friday statement.
“The specific COVID variant has yet to be determined and all CDC guidelines are being followed to include contact tracing and testing protocols.”
A Navy spokesperson would not disclose the number of sailors who tested positive for the virus when asked by USNI News on Friday afternoon.
The Freedom-class LCS departed from its homeport in Mayport, Fla., on Dec. 14 for a U.S. 4th Fleet deployment to the U.S. Southern Command. The ship arrived at Guantanamo Bay on Dec. 20.
The news of the infected sailors come as the Omnicron COVID-19 variant has become the dominant strain in the United States — accounting for more than 70 percent of new cases in the U.S.
The Navy was the first service exposed to large-scale outbreaks early in the pandemic when an outbreak aboard carrier USS Theodore Roosevelt (CVN-71) in early 2020 resulted in a widespread infection of the crew and the death of a sailor in early 2020. However, quickly after the Roosevelt incident, the Navy has been largely successful in controlling outbreaks at sea with an aggressive vaccination push for deployed ships. To date, 17 sailors have died from COVID-19.
The following is the complete Dec. 24, 2021, statement from U.S. 4th Fleet.
Naval Station Guantanamo Bay- USS Milwaukee (LCS 5) a Freedom variant littoral combat ship, remains in port as a result of a portion of the crew testing positive for COVID-19.
The crew is 100% immunized and all COVID-19 positive Sailors are isolated onboard and away from crew members. A portion of those infected have exhibited mild symptoms. The vaccine continues to demonstrate effectiveness against serious illness.
The specific COVID variant has yet to be determined and all CDC guidelines are being followed to include contact tracing and testing protocols.
The ship is following an aggressive mitigation strategy in accordance with Navy and CDC guidelines.
The Milwaukee departed on Dec. [14] for its regularly scheduled deployment to the U.S. 4th Fleet area of operations. The ship is currently in port Naval Station Guantanamo Bay for a scheduled port visit.
