Eight more sailors aboard the USS Theodore Roosevelt have tested positive a second time for the new coronavirus, raising to 13 the number who appear to have become infected again while serving aboard the sidelined aircraft carrier.
All the sailors had previously tested positive and had gone through at least two weeks of isolation.
Before they were allowed to go back to the ship, all had to test negative twice in a row, with the tests separated by at least a day or two.
On Saturday, a Navy official confirmed eight additional sailors had tested positive again.
A day earlier the Navy had said in a statement that five had tested positive a second time. The Navy official was not authorized to speak publicly and requested anonymity.