D.C. Metro is elevating its coronavirus response after three cases in Maryland were confirmed, General Manager Paul J. Wiedefeld told employees on Friday. The response phase has been moved to phase two out of four.
Phase two of Metro's response includes the "targeted deployment of hand sanitizer supplies to frontline employees (who may not have easy access to washrooms), expanded monitoring of absence trends, and more frequent communication with customers and employees." Metro is also suspending all non-essential business travel.
Metro's updated coronavirus response phase comes a day after Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan declared a state of emergency after announcing three confirmed cases of coronavirus in Montgomery County.
Metro activated its pandemic task force one month ago as a precaution for the coronavirus outbreak.
Metro's task force is also developing contingency plans for a potential escalation to a phase 3 response.
