FAA Tower At John Wayne Airport Closed Due To Possible Coronavirus Case
SANTA ANA (CBSLA) – The Federal Aviation Administration Friday morning closed its air traffic control tower at John Wayne Airport in Santa Ana because an employee there may have contracted coronavirus.
The FAA confirmed in a statement to CBS2 that the "airport is open, the tower is closed."
Just before 8:40 a.m., the airport reported that the FAA had closed the tower due to an "unconfirmed case of COVID-19."
The airport said its air traffic was now being handled by the FAA's regional control center. One of the airport's two runways was also closed.
According to an interactive FAA map detailing all its coronavirus cases, the tower was closed for cleaning and quarantine due to a "presumptive positive" case on Thursday. No further details were provided on the employee or their condition, or how many other employees may have been exposed.
On Thursday, Los Angeles International Airport reported an 85 percent decline in passenger traffic due to the coronavirus outbreak.
