A worker at Newport News Shipbuilding tested positive for the coronavirus (COVID-19) over the weekend, shipbuilding president Jennifer Boykin said Monday.
In a Facebook post, Boykin said the person works in Building 600 on the second floor, had not been on company property since March 16 and is recovering but remains in quarantine.
Boykin wrote leadership met with employees who work near the person or who came in close contact with the individual, adding they are advised to call the clinic for more guidance.
She added the company will increase the amount of cleaning procedures such as sanitizing high-touch points in Building 600 for a minimum of seven days and restrict communal eating areas in the building until further notice.
“We are all in this together, and we are all doing the best we can in these unprecedented times,” Boykin wrote. “I remain committed to doing my part by putting you first with every decision we make.”
The shipyard’s sister company, Huntington Ingalls, also had a shipbuilder working in the Pascagoula facility that tested positive recently.
Duane Bourne, spokesman for NNS, said the building is not the corporate office and is located near the Apprentice School and the football field near the shipyard.
He said some engineers, designers and other workers work at the building and the company does not plan on releasing the age or gender individual to protect the person’s privacy.
When asked if the people who came into contact with the individual had all been tested or quarantined, Bourne said there was information on the company’s website with guidelines from the CDC and the VDH if workers think they are exposed.
As of Monday, there are 34 positive cases of the coronavirus in James City County, 5 in Williamsburg, 5 in York County and two in Newport News, according to the Virginia Department of Health’s website.
