The Energy Department’s Savannah River Site in South Carolina is now confirming 35 cases of COVID-19 among its workforce, up by three since Friday.
The updated total was posted on the SRS website Monday. Twenty-three of those infected with novel coronavirus 2019 have recovered and been cleared to return to work, according to the notice.
The Savannah River Site, located near the Georgia state line, is home to facilities belonging to DOE’s Office of Environmental Management as well as the semiautonomous National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA).
During normal times about 11,000 government and contractor employees work at the Savannah River Site. But to decrease the potential spread of COVID-19, the site in March went to minimum safe operations; only a fraction of employees continued to work inside the fence, with others either working remotely or collecting paid leave.
The Savannah River Site began Phase 1 of remobilization on May 27, recalling employees who work in either high-priority or low-risk jobs on the property. Other personnel will be brought back over time, culminating with near-full on-site staffing at Phase 3.
The Hanford Site in Washington state, which is also in Phase 1, reported that eight employees told management Monday they have been tested for COVID-19. The Hanford website did not say if the employees have received the results of the tests. Most of these employees have been away from their work location for more than 10 days, according to the website. Hanford already has 13 confirmed cases of COVID-19 among the federal and contractor workforce.
Hanford also has roughly 11,000 employees. About 25% are currently working on-site.
