The Navy hospital ship sent to relieve stressed New York City hospitals as coronavirus cases surged has returned to Hampton Roads.
All personnel aboard the ship are being tested as Comfort transits the Atlantic Ocean, returning to Naval Station Norfolk following its mission in New York City in support of the nation’s COVID-19 response efforts.
The ship will restock and remain ready for possible future deployments, according to the Navy.
The ship docked in Manhattan on March 30, and while it was originally deployed to care for non-coronavirus patients, by April 6 it had begun accepting those with the virus as the city’s hospitals continued to crowd. (Story continues below the gallery)
The ship was crewed by civilian mariners and a majority of its medical staff was based at the Naval Medical Center in Portsmouth.
Originally deployed to New York City to care for patients without coronavirus, the Comfort switched gears and started accepting them as the city’s hospitals became overrun with people suffering from the disease.
