UH OH

Tulsa Factory Closes Due to Coronavirus Spike—a Week Before Trump Rally Comes to Town

Whirlpool Corporation would not say how many COVID-19 cases it had but the company vowed to reopen next week just before Trump kicks off his first post-coronavirus rally.

Home appliances manufacturer Whirlpool has temporarily closed its factory in Tulsa, Oklahoma, after additional COVID-19 cases were detected among workers. The company wouldn’t say how many of its 1,600 employees had tested positive but the timing could not be worse. President Trump announced this week that he’d hold his first post-pandemic rally in Tulsa on June 19, and attendees will be asked to sign a waiver in the event they contract the virus.

Whirlpool said it was using contract tracing to identify anyone who came into contact with sick employees. The company said it hopes to reopen the plant early next week and would continue using “robust safety measures” like heightened cleaning protocols, increased distances on production lines, and daily temperature checks.