The former commanding officer of the U.S.S. Theodore Roosevelt, Captain Brett Crozier, has departed Guam and arrived in San Diego Monday night.
CDR Ron Flanders, a spokesperson with the U.S. Naval Air Forces, confirmed Crozier’s move with PNC News.
Crozier has now been assigned to Commander, Naval Air Force, US Pacific Fleet, according to Flanders.
That command is located at the Naval Air Station, North Island in Coronado (San Diego), California.
Flanders said Crozier has taken on the position of Special Assistant to the Chief of Staff.
It’s unclear if this is a long-term assignment, or an interim position until a “deeper review” is completed into the COVID-outbreak chain of events aboard the ship.
That in-depth investigation was requested by the Acting Navy Secretary, James McPherson, last week.
In his statement, McPherson said he still had “unanswered questions,” after reviewing the preliminary inquiry into the COVID-19 outbreak aboard the Roosevelt.
Despite Navy brass recommending that Crozier be reinstated, McPherson requested the thorough review, which could reportedly take a month to complete.
He said he hopes to gain a, “more fulsome understanding” of the decisions made by the chain of command.
Captain Crozier was dismissed on April 2 as the commanding officer, after a pleading letter he’d written to Navy leaders got leaked to the media.
In the letter, Crozier detailed what he believed was an alarming outbreak aboard the ship, and asked that all but 10 percent of the crew be moved to shore on Guam, to properly quarantine and sanitize the ship.
While the Navy has stopped updating COVID-case numbers daily among Roosevelt sailors, their last update on Thursday, April 30, showed 1,102 sailors had tested positive.
That is over 22 percent of the roughly 4,800 crew members.
Crozier had himself tested positive for the virus, according to Navy sources confirming with Fox News.
One sailor, 41-year-old Chief Petty Officer Charles Robert Thacker, died April 13 at Naval Hospital Guam due to COVID-19 complications.
Joint Region Marianas reported last week that sailors had begun departing Guam hotels to head back to the ship in Apra Harbor, but only when they’ve isolated/quarantined for a minimum of two weeks, and tested negative for the virus twice.
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