Crozier-Uss Theodore
US Navy



The US Navy reportedly fired the commander of the USS Theodore Roosevelt who raised alarm about a coronavirus outbreak on the aircraft carrier earlier this week.

Acting Navy Secretary Thomas Modly revealed the decision announced Thursday came after Navy Captain Brett Crozier created unnecessary panic among the families of the sailors and Marines after he sent an unclassified email to a broad array of people.

Modly said they believe the captain, who commands a crew 5,000-strong, has lost confidence and exercised extremely poor judgment when he copied in up to 30 other people on a strongly-worded letter meant for his superiors.

The letter was leaked to a media site who published the story on March 31, 2020.

Modly believes Crozier only thought of the safety and well-being of the sailors under his command. They, however, condemn the act as it garnered the opposite reaction, unnecessarily worrying the families of his crew.

He also insisted that the decision to let the captain go was entirely his own, saying he decided the challenges imposed by COVID-19 overwhelmed the captain's ability to act accordingly and professionally.

Former Navy Captain Brett Crozier will keep his rank and remain in the Navy despite being relieved of his command on the carrier.

114 crew members aboard the ship tested positive for the coronavirus on Thursday. The Navy evacuated nearly 1,000 sailors from the carrier currently docked at Guam.

None were seriously ill.

Get up-to-date with the latest COVID-19 news:

The global pandemic COVID-19 has been sweeping through countries all around the globe, infecting 1,016,424 people and killing 53,241 since it was first reported in China in December.

The pandemic forced many Americans to hunker down as fear rises due to the drastic surges of new cases and deaths in recent days. The new coronavirus also hampered many businesses, with as many as 6.6 million US citizens now filing unemployment claims.

The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) recently requested 100,000 military-style body bags from the Pentagon for potential civilian use as US health experts predict a dramatic surge of COVID-19 cases and deaths in the coming weeks.

The Pentagon is reportedly working to address the request. Two people familiar with the request said the defense agency will draw an initial 50,000 from a stockpile it maintains.

The recent request is a chilling counterpoint to the administration's deployment of two hospital ships to the state of New York and Los Angeles.

The ships aim to alleviate stress from regional hospitals overwhelmed by the rising number of coronavirus patients by providing more bed spaces and more room for healthcare workers to focus on patients in need of serious medical care.

As many as 200,000 Americans are projected to die due to the respiratory virus.

"This is going to be a painful two weeks," Trump said, "our strength will be tested, our endurance will be tried."