Coronavirus Groton: Electric Boat Now Has 17 Confirmed Cases

GROTON, CT — Electric Boat president Kevin Graney, who himself has tested positive for the new coronavirus, announced that there are four more employees with confirmed cases bringing the total to 17. Among those is a senior vice president, he said.

Graney also said that employees should check their temperatures before coming to work and while the company has simple thermometer strips, there's not enough for all. Patch had reached out to EB about the lack of temperature testing more than a week ago, after Gov. Ned Lamont said the company and others in the state had implemented the COVID-19 mitigation measure. It had not, but after a Patch interview, said it would be looking to add that as a protocol if possible.

In a message to employees, Graney said the four new cases are:

• An individual at Eagle Park who was last at work on March 30.
• A New London-based employee who was last at work on March 20.
• A Groton-based employee who works in building 70 who was last at work on March 25.

And Electric Boat senior vice president Kurt Hesch has also tested positive.

"Kurt was tested as a precaution when I fell ill, and he reports he has none of the symptoms of COVID-19. As a precautionary measure, Kurt will work from home and will continue to monitor his health. We will strictly follow the CDC protocols to get Kurt back to work as quickly as possible," Graney wrote.

He said that "all immediate coworkers of these employees have been contacted and appropriate cleaning efforts have been performed."

Graney said he was "proud to say" that the company had instituted many of the mitigation recommendations by Lamont "into practice at all of our EB locations, including staggering lunch times in operations areas, starting a second shift in New London, increasing our cleaning efforts in high traffic areas and encouraging working remotely and the use of teleconferencing and other technologies to substitute for in-person meetings."

The temperature checks recommendation became effective Tuesday. He said employees should take their "temperature before you report to work each day. If you have a temperature of 100 degrees or greater, do not come to work. If you do not have a thermometer, we will provide a simple forehead strip thermometer to you. We have a limited supply of these simple devices and cannot supply one to every employee. Please use your own personal thermometer if you have one. If you are working remotely, please do not request a thermometer. More details on how to get a thermometer will be available shortly."

Read more:

Coronavirus Groton: 32 Electric Boat Workers Wait For Results

Coronavirus Groton: Electric Boat Worker Tests Positive

Coronavirus Groton: 13 Electric Boat Workers Test Positive

Don't miss local and statewide news about coronavirus developments and precautions. Sign up for Patch alerts and daily newsletters.