Seven of Alaska’s 32 confirmed cases of COVID-19 were on Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson, according to an online statement.
The base late Sunday declared a public health emergency, which will halt nonessential movement.
The seven people who tested positive are in isolation and “following all CDC (U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) and DHHS (Department of Health and Human Services) isolation protocols,” the statement said. Six of the people who tested positive are affiliated with JBER, said Commander Patricia A. Csànk during a livestreamed town hall Monday.
Csànk said the base has been preparing to handle a COVID-19 outbreak.
“We know that there was no way the virus was going to skip our base, skip this state or our community, just the way the virus has spread," she said.