Missouri woman who tested positive for coronavirus rode Chicago to St. Louis train
A woman who tested positive, on a preliminary basis, for the new coronavirus traveled on an Amtrak train earlier this week from Chicago to St. Louis, the railroad company said.
In a statement Sunday, Amtrak said the woman traveled Wednesday on train 303. The company said it was notifying passengers and employees who may have been on the same train and it was thoroughly disinfecting the stations in Chicago and St. Louis.
“As a precaution, we have taken the train out of service for comprehensive cleaning and disinfection,” the statement said.
Missouri Gov. Mike Parson on Saturday announced the state’s first positive case of COVID-19, which was in St. Louis County. Officials considered the case a “presumptive positive” because the test used had not been confirmed by the Food and Drug Administration.
The St. Louis County woman who tested presumptive positive is in her 20s and attends an out-of-state college. She had been studying abroad in Italy prior to arriving home earlier this week, St. Louis County Executive Sam Page said.
The woman, who had a fever and respiratory issues, called the hotline set up by the county health department and received instructions, Page said. She was tested for COVID-19 at Mercy Hospital in St. Louis.
The woman was in isolation at her home with family members, who were said to have also been in isolation.
News of the virus in Missouri came hours after Kansas confirmed its first case of the new disease in Johnson County, where a woman under 50 is reported to have the virus. No cases have been confirmed in Kansas City.
The virus has infected more than 100,000 people worldwide and has killed more than 3,500 people. It emerged in more than 100 countries and has edged into more U.S. states, including Florida, Pennsylvania, Indiana, Minnesota and Nebraska.
The disease has killed more than 20 people in the United States, mostly in Washington state.
This story was originally published March 8, 2020 at 5:26 PM.
