Boeing plans two-week shutdown of factories in Seattle area because of coronavirus

[Nat]

A Boeing worker who came down with the COVID-19 respiratory disease caused by the coronavirus has died, the first death among the infected employees.

Co-workers and a union official who confirmed his death said the man was an inspector who worked on the 787 Dreamliner in Everett.

The Seattle Times is not naming him until his family is informed. Boeing said in a statement it is “taking the right steps to confirm the information while respecting the individual’s and the family’s privacy.”

The man’s job was to oversee unfinished work that had traveled out from the factory to the flight line.

He was also a shop steward in the International Association of Machinists (IAM) union.

On Saturday, while he was still in intensive care, his brother posted a plea to Boeing on Facebook.

“Boeing Everett plant, please close your doors and shut down,” his brother wrote, adding that the man had worked at Boeing for 27 years.

“My brother is on life support. Please pray for him and all affected by the virus,” he concluded.

In a subsequent post, he said his brother had died.

As of end of day Saturday, there were 29 confirmed cases among Boeing employees company-wide, 24 of those in the Puget Sound area and 5 out of state. The local tally is 17 confirmed COVID-19 cases in Everett, 5 in Renton, 1 in Auburn and 1 at the local headquarters in Longacres.

Boeing worker at Everett plant dies from coronavirus infection

Co-workers and a union official who confirmed his death said the man was an inspector who worked on the 787 Dreamliner in Everett.

www.seattletimes.com

Boeing on Monday said it is shutting down production at its factories in the Seattle area for two weeks as the manufacturer grapples with the fallout of the coronavirus pandemic.

The company’s move to suspend its production at its facilities in the Puget Sound area comes as Washington State, where most of Boeing’s production is centered, is in a state of emergency. Several Boeing employees have tested positive for COVID-19. It marks one of the biggest disruptions yet across U.S. manufacturing from the disease and draconian measures aimed at stopping its spread.

“These actions are being taken to ensure the well-being of employees, their families and the local community, and will include an orderly shutdown consistent with the requirements of its customers,” Boeing said in a statement.

Boeing plans two-week shutdown of factories in Seattle area because of coronavirus

Boeing is planning to shut down production of facilities in the Puget Sound area of Washington where it makes wide-body aircraft due to the outbreak of the coronavirus.

www.cnbc.com