President Donald Trump on Thursday announced that he would travel personally to Virginia on Saturday to send off a medical ship to New York for coronavirus patients.
“I think I’m going to go out and I’ll kiss it goodbye. I’ll go to Virginia, as you know. I’ll go and we’ll be waving together,” Trump said, adding, “Great ship.”
The medical ship USNS Comfort is currently at the Norfolk naval base and will arrive in New York City on Monday. The Comfort has 1,000 medical beds, 12 fully equipped operating rooms, and up to 1,200 doctors, nurses, and medical specialists.
“I actually look forward to Saturday to see it go,” Trump said, who added that there would be a farewell ceremony in Norfolk.
The ship is expected to provide hospital surge capacity for medical care for patients in New York City as the city struggles with the coronavirus outbreak.