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US Navy fires Captain Brett Crozier who raised alarm over coronavirus outbreak on his ship

Captain Brett Crozier addresses the crew of the aircraft carrier USS Theodore Roosevelt (file photo): via REUTERS
Captain Brett Crozier addresses the crew of the aircraft carrier USS Theodore Roosevelt (file photo): via REUTERS

The US Navy has fired the captain of a coronavirus-hit aircraft carrier after he raised the alarm about an outbreak on his ship.

More than 100 sailors on the USS Theodore Roosevelt have tested positive for Covid-19, but none are in hospital.

In a letter, Capt Brett Crozier had urged his superiors to act to prevent US troops dying outside of wartime.

He had warned the Pentagon that the outbreak on board his ship was “accelerating” because crew members were living in confined spaces.

More than 100 sailors on the USS Theodore Roosevelt have tested positive for Covid-19, but none are in hospital (US NAVY/AFP via Getty Images)
More than 100 sailors on the USS Theodore Roosevelt have tested positive for Covid-19, but none are in hospital (US NAVY/AFP via Getty Images)

He called for "decisive action", saying uninfected sailors had to be removed and isolated.

"We are not at war. Sailors do not need to die," he said in the four-page letter, dated 30 March, which was later published by the San Francisco Chronicle.

Capt Crozier called for
Capt Crozier called for

But acting navy secretary Thomas Modly said the ship's commander "demonstrated extremely poor judgement" in the middle of a crisis.

On Thursday, Mr Modly told reporters that Capt Crozier was being fired for allegedly leaking the letter to the media.

Acting navy secretary Thomas Moldy touring the ship after the removal of Capt Crozier (AP)
Acting navy secretary Thomas Moldy touring the ship after the removal of Capt Crozier (AP)

He said the captain copied too many people into a memo, which was leaked to the California newspaper and then quickly spread to many news outlets.

He said Mr Crozier should have gone directly to his immediate commanders, who were already moving to help the ship.

Acting navy secretary Thomas Moldy touring the ship after the removal of Capt Crozier (US NAVY/AFP via Getty Images)
Acting navy secretary Thomas Moldy touring the ship after the removal of Capt Crozier (US NAVY/AFP via Getty Images)

Mr Moldy said the letter "created the impression the Navy was not responding to his questions".

He also said Mr Crozier created a panic by suggesting 50 sailors could die.

"What it does, it undermines our efforts and the chain of command's efforts to address this problem and creates a panic and creates the perception that the Navy is not on the job, the government is not on the job, and it's just not true," Mr Modly said.

The USS Theodore Roosevelt, with a crew of nearly 5,000, is currently docked in Guam and unaffected crew disembarked and went into quarantine on Friday.

The US island territory's governor said they could stay as long as they had no interactions with locals.

In a statement, Democratic leaders of the House Armed Services Committee said: "While Captain Crozier clearly went outside the chain of command, his dismissal at this critical moment... is a destabilising move that will likely put our service members at greater risk and jeopardise our fleet's readiness."

"Throwing the commanding officer overboard without a thorough investigation is not going to solve the growing crisis aboard the USS Theodore Roosevelt."

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