What just happened? Amazon has confirmed that one of its employees at the company's Seattle, Washington, headquarters has tested positive for the novel coronavirus. In an email to employees in Seattle and Bellevue, the company's health and safety office said the infected worker was based in the Brazil (SEA53) building, part of the South Lake Union Campus.
The email states that the individual went home feeling unwell on Tuesday, February 25, and has not entered the Amazon offices since then. The person tested positive for COVID-19 on March 3.
A spokesperson said Amazon is "supporting the affected employee who is in quarantine." The firm has notified workers who have been in close contact with the infected person, advising anyone experiencing symptoms of the coronavirus to stay at home and seek medical attention. It's also conducting "enhanced deep cleaning and sanitization" at the office.
"The risk of transmission for employees who were not in close contact with this individual is assessed to be low," the email said.
Amazon earlier this week confirmed that two of its workers in Italy had contracted the coronavirus and were in quarantine. The company has asked its 798,000 employees to avoid any non-essential travel inside the US and abroad, a tactic used by other firms, including Facebook, Google, and Apple.
Amazon is dealing with coronavirus-related issues on its store, having banned more than a million products in recent weeks that claimed to cure or defend against the virus. It's also taken down tens of thousands of listings that have been price gouging.