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A Tyson Food plant in Indiana has a coronavirus pandemic of its own. According to a report from WISH TV, the meat plant in Logansport, Indiana has seen 890 of its 2,200 workers test positive for COVID-19.
The news comes days after President Donald Trump signed an executive order using the Defense Production Act to order meat processing plants stay open.
Tyson closed the facility and is working with the health department and Cass County officials to figure out a safe plan to reopen the facility.
“We’ve been screening worker temperatures, requiring protective face coverings and conducting additional cleaning and sanitizing,” Tyson said in the statement. “We’ve also implemented social distancing measures, such as workstation dividers and more breakroom space.”
The state of Indiana has seen more than 17,800 confirmed cases of the novel coronavirus across all of its counties with the death toll just over 1,000.
The coronavirus mainly comes from animals and a majority of those who were infected early either worked at or frequently visited the Huanan seafood wholesale market in Wuhan, according to The Guardian. The virus is similar to Severe acute respiratory syndrome (Sars) and Middle Eastern respiratory syndrome (Mers).
The Wuhan coronavirus is transmitted from person to person through “droplet transmission.” That means an infected person can pass the virus by sneezing or coughing on another person as well as by direct contact.
While a majority of the cases have been detected in the United States and China — with more than 61,000 deaths in the United States — it has now reached many countries around the world. It has also been confirmed in Italy, Australia, Canada, France, Germany, and many other eastern countries.
