U.S. Navy does not rule out punishing captain who criticized coronavirus response

By Idrees Ali and Phil Stewart

 

FILE PHOTO: The USS Theodore Roosevelt (CVN-71) is seen while entering into the port in Da Nang, Vietnam, March 5, 2020. REUTERS/Kham

 

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. Navy on Wednesday did not rule out punishing the captain of the aircraft carrier Theodore Roosevelt, who wrote a scathing letter to Navy leadership asking for stronger measures to stop the spread of the coronavirus.

 

In a four-page letter, the contents of which were confirmed by U.S. officials to Reuters on Tuesday, Captain Brett Crozier described a bleak situation onboard the nuclear-powered carrier as more sailors tested positive for the virus.

 

Sailors and their families have expressed anxiety and frustration.

 

The letter put the Pentagon on the defensive about whether it was doing enough to keep service members safe and alarmed the families of those aboard the ship. Its home port is San Diego, California.

 

"I don't know who leaked the letter to the media. That would be something that would violate the principles of good order and discipline, if he were responsible for that. But I don't know that," Acting U.S. Navy Secretary Thomas Modly said when asked multiple times if the captain would be punished.

 

"The fact that he wrote the letter up to his chain of command to express his concerns would absolutely not result in any type of retaliation," Modly said.

 

In the letter, the captain called for "decisive action" - removing over 4,000 sailors from the ship and isolating them. He said that if the Navy did not act now, it would be failing to properly safeguard "our most trusted asset - our sailors."

 

"It's disappointing to hear him say that. However, at the same time, I know that that's not the truth," Modly said, adding that he did not agree with the captain that all but 10 percent of the ship's crew could be removed.

 

The carrier was in the Pacific when the Navy reported its first coronavirus case a week ago. It has since pulled into port in Guam, a U.S. island territory in the western Pacific.

 

About 1,000 personnel have been taken off from the ship so far and that number will rise to 2,700 in the next few days. So far 93 personnel on the ship have tested positive.

 

"This ship has weapons on it. It has munitions on it... It requires a certain number of people on that ship to maintain the safety and security of the ship," he added.

 

'I FEEL HELPLESS'

As coronavirus has spread, frustration has grown over the Navy's speed in dealing with the crisis, a sailor onboard the Theodore Roosevelt told Reuters, adding that on Wednesday the Navy communicated a satisfactory plan to those on the ship.

 

"Why does it seem that our (commanding officer) is begging the Navy to take care of us and keep us safe and higher ups don't seem to be quickly making a good plan for us?," said the sailor, who spoke on condition of anonymity.

 

Over the past few days, there have been messages of concern from family members on social media.

 

"As a mother I feel helpless... I was able to speak to my son earlier, but he has no idea what is going on or where he is going," Barbara Muniz, who said her son is on the ship, wrote on the carrier's Facebook page.

 

On Monday, Dee Ronmar wrote that her son was on the ship and she did not understand why the carrier was allowed to make a port visit in Vietnam last month.

 

"How come more safety precautions weren't taken to ensure no contractions, minimizing the spread, when you all docked a few weeks ago?," Ronmar wrote.

 

During the briefing, Master Chief Petty Officer of the Navy Russell Smith said that "morale does seem high" on the ship.

 

(Reporting by Idrees Ali and Phil Stewart; Editing by Cynthia Osterman)

 

-- © Copyright Reuters 2020-04-02

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9 minutes ago, webfact said:

"Why does it seem that our (commanding officer) is begging the Navy to take care of us and keep us safe and higher ups don't seem to be quickly making a good plan for us?," said the sailor, who spoke on condition of anonymity.

For the same reason as the bullsh*t that has been going on in France for many years.
Management of public health, something not quantifiable, by penpushers who must obey the ministers concerned otherwise they are fired.

 

Health is not quantifiable; its budget must be elastic with a view to several years.

 

The question that needed to be asked is how this virus find its way to ships on the high seas like warships and dozens of cruising boats seemingly isolated from land's investments? was it some kind of time delayed trojan horse virus?...

4 minutes ago, ezzra said:

The question that needed to be asked is how this virus find its way to ships on the high seas like warships and dozens of cruising boats seemingly isolated from land's investments? was it some kind of time delayed trojan horse virus?...

The ships and crew are not isolated.

Sounds a lot like China silencing doctors for telling the truth....another disaster in the making. If problems on this ship...you can bet others and bases also. Need to proactively test and isolate all military personnel ASAP...the least we can do to protect our men and women in uniform

Typical Reuters article, full of agenda ridden opinion. If it was allowed here, I would rewrite it to ensure it is factually accurate and in accordance with journalistic standards, then post it here so you could also see.

 

But hey, he went through the chain of command. Leaking the letter though? Violation of military discipline.

That's it, same old story, shoot the messenger.

13 minutes ago, Nyezhov said:

Typical Reuters article, full of agenda ridden opinion. If it was allowed here, I would rewrite it to ensure it is factually accurate and in accordance with journalistic standards, then post it here so you could also see.

 

 

What's stopping you? You could rewrite it. The information isn't protected. Just the way the words are put together. As for quotes, use asterisks. We could figure it out.

That commander must have known that that letter could wreck his career.  Hat's off to him.

6 minutes ago, cmarshall said:

That commander must have known that that letter could wreck his career.  Hat's off to him.

He stood up for him men ...

 

You can read the letter here--> https://www.sfchronicle.com/bayarea/article/Exclusive-Captain-of-aircraft-carrier-with-15167883.php

 

Can't imagine this is the last vessel which will experience Covid-19 issues? Having a plan might help? 

 

Pacific Fleet Commander outlines plans for containing outbreak on carrier Roosevelt

 

Hours after a leaked letter from the Commanding Officer of the embattled carrier Theodore Roosevelt pleading for more support from the Navy leaked to the public, the head of U.S. Pacific Fleet told reporters he is working as fast as he can to get a plan in place to rotate sailors off the ship.

 

https://www.defensenews.com/news/coronavirus/2020/04/01/pacific-fleet-commander-outlines-plans-for-containing-outbreak-on-carrier-roosevelt/

 

 

Captain of USS Theodore Roosevelt requests nearly 4,000 sailors be isolated as coronavirus spreads

 

WASHINGTON — The captain of the USS Theodore Roosevelt has requested permission to remove most of the aircraft carrier’s crew from the ship and isolate roughly 4,000 sailors to help curtail a coronavirus outbreak aboard the vessel.

 

Capt. Brett Crozier wrote in an unaddressed letter Monday to Navy leadership that the ship’s environment is “most conducive to spread of the disease” with open shared sleeping areas, shared restrooms and workspaces, and confined passageways to move through on the ship. He wrote the Roosevelt’s crew is unable to follow Centers for Disease Control and Prevention or Navy procedures to protect the health of sailors through individual isolation on the ship for 14 or more days.

 

https://www.stripes.com/news/navy/captain-of-uss-theodore-roosevelt-requests-nearly-4-000-sailors-be-isolated-as-coronavirus-spreads-1.624395

 

 

10 minutes ago, rvaviator said:

He stood up for him men ...

And in this day and age, standing up for your people, demonstrating honor and integrity, speaking the truth, calling out incompetence or dereliction of duty is considered a terrible thing, to be avoided at all costs, by the increasingly thin skinned guys in power, who seem to abhor truth, honesty and transparency.

Edited April 2, 20206 yr by spidermike007

3 hours ago, ezzra said:

The question that needed to be asked is how this virus find its way to ships on the high seas like warships and dozens of cruising boats seemingly isolated from land's investments? was it some kind of time delayed trojan horse virus?...

 

per the article:

 

3 hours ago, webfact said:

On Monday, Dee Ronmar wrote that her son was on the ship and she did not understand why the carrier was allowed to make a port visit in Vietnam last month.

"How come more safety precautions weren't taken to ensure no contractions, minimizing the spread, when you all docked a few weeks ago?," Ronmar wrote.

appears to be a normal port call, no mention that her son wrote they made port but were unable to enjoy liberty.

3 hours ago, Nyezhov said:

Typical Reuters article, full of agenda ridden opinion. If it was allowed here, I would rewrite it to ensure it is factually accurate and in accordance with journalistic standards, then post it here so you could also see.

 

But hey, he went through the chain of command. Leaking the letter though? Violation of military discipline.

 

did he?  had read he sent the letter directly to the pentagon, bypassing the normal chain of command.   the wording used by modly quoted below seems odd.   "up to" his chain of command?  could be a simple slip, could have been misheard by a reporter.  sounds deceptive coming from a(n acting) navy secretary.

 

3 hours ago, webfact said:

"The fact that he wrote the letter up to his chain of command to express his concerns would absolutely not result in any type of retaliation," Modly said.

 

29 minutes ago, ChouDoufu said:

had read he sent the letter directly to the pentagon, bypassing the normal chain of command

That is rather common in history and sometimes  the bypasser is proved right, viz Emile Driants complaints about Joffres policy vis a vis Verdun in the famous letter to Gallieni in December 1915.

 

Other times its just ego driven. Look at MacCarthur.

3 hours ago, cmarshall said:

That commander must have known that that letter could wreck his career.  Hat's off to him.

The problem was not the letter, but its leak to the media.

How did the virus get on the ship? Easy. About three weeks ago they stopped off in Danang, Vietnam. Excuse was that virus didn't seem so rampant at the time... probably only expected usual doses of STD's

3 hours ago, Nyezhov said:

That is rather common in history and sometimes  the bypasser is proved right, viz Emile Driants complaints about Joffres policy vis a vis Verdun in the famous letter to Gallieni in December 1915.

 

Other times its just ego driven. Look at MacCarthur.

not sure i understand your point.

 

are you agreeing that (it appears) he bypassed the chain of command, but that skipping the normal communications route is common?

 

aside from that, would be interesting to know who leaked the letter, and why.

4 hours ago, spidermike007 said:

And in this day and age, standing up for your people, demonstrating honor and integrity, speaking the truth, calling out incompetence or dereliction of duty is considered a terrible thing, to be avoided at all costs, by the increasingly thin skinned guys in power, who seem to abhor truth, honesty and transparency.

That's right, we saw this happen in China with Doctors who dared to speak up.

 

Lets hope the US doesn't choose the same road as the Chinese government - I expect that they will though, they will punish the guy who spoke out, they won't be able to help themselves.

Little is known yet as to how crews were infected. But what is clear is that the Navy has no process in place to deal immediately with any ighl infectious pandemic on ships. This aircraft carrier is a hop, skip and jump from becoming inoperable for its mission.

Which leads to the potential for the naval fleets now being dispatched to carry on a "war against drugs" in the Caribbean and South America regions from also becoming coronavirus hot spots. Unless all these ships have been out to sea for the last 30 days before being dispatched, they may already have infected crews. expect more US Navy ships to have infected crews and more captains demanding viral protection for their crews. 

1 hour ago, ChouDoufu said:

not sure i understand your point.

 

are you agreeing that (it appears) he bypassed the chain of command, but that skipping the normal communications route is common?

 

aside from that, would be interesting to know who leaked the letter, and why.

Easy to know why, because nothing was being done.

 

Who? If it gets things done then i dont care.

 

All this blaming the messenger is deflection nonsense. Fix the problem.

 

Its becoming like thailand, nothing ever done unless its in the media and they are shamed into it.

Edited April 2, 20206 yr by Sujo

He may not be officially punished, but his career is over.  That's how it's done folks.

8 hours ago, ezzra said:

The question that needed to be asked is how this virus find its way to ships on the high seas like warships and dozens of cruising boats seemingly isolated from land's investments? was it some kind of time delayed trojan horse virus?...

Story is it was linked to a stop in Vietnam?

Did this captain take any actions to mitigate the situation, contain or quarantine the infected personnel or just cry?

Seems the U.S. Navy is in need of better qualified/trained management staff (captains).

Still remember the two or three collisions of U.S. Navy ships in Singapore was it, and Japan, or Hong Kong maybe?

4 hours ago, Tchooptip said:

The problem was not the letter, but its leak to the media.

When your ( highest) commander does not want to listen, you, as captain of the ship, and responsable for all personel on that vessel, has the duty to do everything in his/her power to help to solve the problem.

The congressional medal would be an appropriate award... 

I seem to recall a news story of sailors on liberty in Saigon.   I thought there are strict orders no sex while on leave.  The article said some sort of hat was the hot souvenir.    

https://www.militarytimes.com/off-duty/gearscout/tacticool/2020/03/02/us-pilots-don-retro-saigon-cowboy-hats-during-massive-asia-wargame/

3 hours ago, KenKadz said:

Did this captain take any actions to mitigate the situation, contain or quarantine the infected personnel or just cry?

Seems the U.S. Navy is in need of better qualified/trained management staff (captains).

Still remember the two or three collisions of U.S. Navy ships in Singapore was it, and Japan, or Hong Kong maybe?

Sir with all due respect to rise to command of a nuclear aircraft carrier with the awesome terrifying responsibility that goes with it you can rest assured that man has been well and truly vetted the slightest blemish on his navel career would have disqualified him he imo showed the true qualities of a good captain in his responsibility to his crew and yes he did ruin his career but as a good captain he put his crew first.With the present vindictive leadership in the White House it wouldent surprise me if he is punished in some way 

3 hours ago, KenKadz said:

Did this captain take any actions to mitigate the situation, contain or quarantine the infected personnel or just cry?

Seems the U.S. Navy is in need of better qualified/trained management staff (captains).

Still remember the two or three collisions of U.S. Navy ships in Singapore was it, and Japan, or Hong Kong maybe?

Which doesnt have anything to do with what is being done to help the sailors.

I heard the response from that bureaucratic <deleted> Secretary of Navy, it and he was/is a disgrace. Good on the man for having the guts a cajones to stand up for his sailors.  

The captain is toast as his superiors have no clue what it means to run an aircraft carrier (something I dont know either - but then, I am not a captain). The commander's intention was clear and you can take it to the bank, that someone on the mainland leaked the letter - and in all fairness, there is nothing wrong in going to town with such news. 

Staining the immaculate image of US armed forces, be it air force, navy etc. does not go well with those guys who budget and spend - this year alone - USD 723 billion on "defence". 

Two questions remain; what does an US aircraft carrier do in Da Nang only a month ago - a former arch enemy against who they lost the war. And don't give me the "fresh salad" story? 

The other question remains, why all those mothers did not feel helpless and voiced their concern when their little rays of sunshine joined, in these cases, the navy? 

Barbara Muniz and Dee Ronmar - I share your motherly concerns about your sons but why did you not convince them, that the US does NOT need them for any naval defense and hence refuse to join any armed forces?

Defence would mean that some are attacking the US; well, that would need to be substantiated first. Unless, of course, the aggressive Canadians are doing their little submarine attacks again - or - the Mexican with their equally nuclear aircraft carriers are in the process of attacking San Diego. 

Just hope none of these innocent kids are returning home in a Covid-19 bodybag. It would be the final wake-up call in third generation after the US fiddling in the Korea war early 50s and their uncalled involvement in the Indochina war fifty years ago. The official Washington DC will never learn ...