https://www.ktuu.com/content/news/Prudhoe-Bay-worker-tests-positive-for-COVID-19-569265481.htmlANCHORAGE, Alaska (KTUU) — BP Alaska says it will stop all non-essential activity on the slope after a worker at Prudhoe Bay tested positive for the novel coronavirus.
In an emailed statement Tuesday afternoon, BP Director of U.S. Media Affairs for Alaska Megan Baldino said the company is scaling back operations to reduce potential infection vectors.
"BP is following procedures and protocols to minimize the risk of COVID19 and ensure the safety of our people," Baldino said. "We are eliminating all non-essential activity on the slope. The safety and wellbeing of staff and contractors and respect for the communities in which we operate is our highest priority."
On Tuesday night, Baldino confirmed to KTUU that BP is ending the company's 2020 exploratory 2-rig drilling program.
DHSS Commissioner Adam Crum said in a statement Tuesday night that the confirmed case on the North Slope is an Alaskan resident who had recently traveled out of state.
According to Crum, the individual returned to Alaska prior to the March 23 statewide mandate requiring anyone traveling into Alaska from out of state to undergo a 14-day quarantine. Crum says the individual traveled to the North Slope on March 25, began displaying symptoms within two days of arriving, and was tested and placed into quarantine.
