Workers at Kansas FedEx Facility Infected with Coronavirus

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FedEx has confirmed that workers from its facility in the Kansas City suburb of Olathe have tested positive for COVID-19.

A spokesperson from FedEx Ground said in a statement that it was working cooperatively with county health officials and offering voluntary COVID-19 testing to employees and vendors at the facility.

The positive tests are considered to be the first cluster of coronavirus cases tied to a workplace in Johnson County, which announced nine cases in the cluster on May 14 without identifying the name of the affected business, The Kansas City Star reports.

FedEx said it has been providing hand soap, disinfecting wipes, masks, latex gloves and hand sanitizer to employees. It said it has also implemented temperature checks, symptom screenings and changes to its process to allow for social distancing.

At least 10 people from multiple counties and two states who participated in events at Lake Perry in May have confirmed cases of the coronavirus, the Shawnee County Health Department said in a news release. The department is investigating the gatherings, which appear to have violated the statewide stay-at-home order in effect at the time.

The department has linked some of the people who became infected at the lake, about 60 miles (96 km) west of Kansas City, with a recruit officer at the Topeka Police Department Recruit Academy who tested positive but who didn’t ago to the lake. The recruit’s infection forced the academy to shut down temporarily and all the recruits are on quarantine, the department said.

Statewide, Kansas has recorded 193 deaths and 7,900 cases, according to Johns Hopkins University, although the numbers are believed to be low with initial limits in testing.

For most people, the coronavirus causes mild or moderate symptoms, such as fever and cough, that clear up in two to three weeks. For some, especially older adults and people with existing health problems, it can cause more severe illness, or death.