3 TSA officers in San Jose are being quarantined after they tested positive for the coronavirus

Advertisement
3 TSA officers in San Jose are being quarantined after they tested positive for the coronavirus
People walk to reach TSA immigration process at the John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York, U.S., March 9, 2020. REUTERS/Eduardo Munoz

Reuters

Advertisement

People walk to reach TSA immigration process at the John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York

  • Three Transportation Security Administration officers at Mineta San Jose International Airport tested positive for the coronavirus, the agency told Business Insider on Wednesday.
  • The officers are being quarantined and receiving medical treatment, the TSA said.
  • Other TSA employees they came in contact with over the last 14 days are also being quarantined, though it was unclear if passengers who the officers came in contact with have been notified.
  • Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

Three Transportation Security Administration officers at the Mineta San Jose International Airport tested positive for COVID-19, the virus caused by the coronavirus, the TSA said on Wednesday.

The three officers are being quarantined and are receiving medical treatment, the TSA said in a statement to Business Insider.

Other TSA employees that they came in contact with over the past 14 days are also being quarantined.

Advertisement

The TSA did not specify if passengers who came in contact with the officers would be notified.

TSA officers are allowed to wear surgical masks and "frontline" officers are required to wear nitrile gloves when screening passengers, the TSA said.

The agency said passengers should wash their hands before and after the screening process, and that officers are being encouraged to wash their hands and cover their coughs.

The TSA said items like bins used in the screening process should be treated as "any other piece of public property," so travelers should avoid placing items like phones and wallets directly in the bins and instead place them in carry-on luggage.

The three new cases come as the number of positive coronavirus cases in the US reached over 1,000. Major events like South by Southwest and the Coachella music festival have been cancelled or postponed, and major universities have made classes remote and asked students not to return from spring break.

Advertisement
{{}}