Many of you have been wondering about certain businesses that are allowed to remain open during the pandemic. One of the most frequently asked about is the Tesla facility.
On Sunday, 2 News received an email from an employee at Tesla that was sent out from a direct supervisor, saying an employee tested positive for COVID-19.
In part, the email states "this individual was onsite at the Gigafactory for one hour on March 21st before going home feeling ill. This individual remained at home since that time and was later tested and confirmed to have COVID-19."
2 News reached out to Tesla that night, but they have yet to get back to us. We were able to speak to the Storey County Manager, who was has yet to receive confirmation of this potential coronavirus case at the Gigafactory.
"We looked into it immediately, and the documentation we have on hand at this point does not confirm that that actually is a positive case. Ourselves as well as our Quad County Regional Management Center are looking into that matter," said Storey County Manager Austin Osborne.
Osborne also said in a post on the 26th that Tahoe-Reno Industrial Center, or TRIC, companies are taking the COVID-19 matter seriously, and announced that the Gigafactory will reduce on-site staff by roughly 75 percent "in the coming days."
As for being allowed to stay open, Osborne says according to the governor, Tesla is considered essential.
"With the parts they are making on site, just like with general motors or NAPA, making parts for cars across the country and all, Tesla is doing the same thing. And so with the Governors Proclamation, it does show them as an essential business," said Osborne.
While we weren't able to go on site at Tesla, we did speak to the president of the transportation system, which employees at the TRIC use: My Ride To Work.
"We have dispensers for hand sanitizers on each of our buses, wipes for the seats on each of our vehicles. They are disinfected before and after each shift to ensure that there is no spread of germs," said Geoff Donahue, President of My Ride To Work.
On top of extra cleaning efforts and bumping pay for drivers and cleaning staff, My Ride To Work has also doubled their fleet in order to adhere to proper social distancing.
"On our 56 passenger bus for example, we are only allowing 18 passengers. So right around 30 percent to allow each shuttle social distancing across the board," said Donahue.
This is a developing story, as the Storey County team is working with other counties to find out if this potential case is actually a positive one.
