NAVAL BASE SAN DIEGO, Calif. — The US Navy proudly cited the eradication of coronavirus aboard the amphibious assault ship USS Bonhomme Richard (LHD-6) as a metric for the vessel’s mission readiness.

“Sure, we may have hit a little snag with that fire thing,” Rear Adm. Philip Sobeck, commander of Expeditionary Strike Group Three, told reporters. “But don’t let that distract you from the fact we have tracked not a single instance of coronavirus on the ship since taking 100 percent of the personnel off.”