Petty Officer Adrian Stanton was on his first navy deployment.
He lost the ship's commander, caught the coronavirus, spent weeks in quarantine, then returned from this long strange trip to a life and home he barely recognized.
When USS Theodore Roosevelt left for the South China Sea, the coronavirus did not seem to Stanton like the U.S. Navy's problem. The whispers on board though began a month into the mission.
"I knew it was like flu-like symptoms, but it wasn't like what you see in the movies. You don’t get it then you are gone instantly. At the same time, it was weird,” Stanton said.
That very day, Captain Brett Crozier announced two crew members were infected.
It was Petty Officer Stanton's wake up call.
"That was probably the scariest part, not being able to properly quarantine. I couldn't get away from you if I wanted to, we're on the same ship. Yeah, it got pretty real really fast," he remembered.
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It got real when the ship docked in Guam and more than a thousand crew members tested positive.
Captain Crosier ultimately lost his job after sounding the alarm to his superiors, then that notice went public.
"He did the best he could. Like I said, no one has ever dealt with anything like this in quite some time," Stanton said.
While thousands of sailors were evacuated Stanton stayed on board. As a Nuclear Qualified Electricians Mate, he was considered essential. He was part of the 200-member skeleton crew.
Despite precautions he made this mistake.
"I borrowed someone's cell phone that tested positive and then I was just like, 'Oh no.' Then, sure enough, they informed me I tested positive myself," Stanton said.
He was treated, quarantined, brought back to full health and the ship in five weeks, Stanton said.
With Corona Virus behind him the Petty Officer looked forward to home only to find at home a whole new adventure.
“Not only am I dealing with not being a civilian for the past six months, it's weird to kind of integrate back in, but I am also dealing with everybody wearing masks. Everybody maintaining distance. It's weird to get used to,” Stanton said.
Stanton compares his bout with the coronavirus to a bad sinus infection. Despite the hurdles he was most happy the carrier requalified to be war ship ready before they returned here to base.
While he was away there was a storm in San Diego that flooded his home.
The entire downstairs was underwater, but Stanton’s homeowner’s insurance didn’t cover the $10,000 repair bill.
After hearing about the sailor’s troubles, Hometown Restoration teamed up with ServePro to remove the damage and dry out the house for free.
"He had no idea that his home was under two or three inches of water and the amount of work yet to be done for him," Hometown Restoration owner Justin Sachs said.
ServePro co-owner Steve Carlile retired from the Marine Corps.
"We're 100 percent behind backing up military veterans because we know what they go through because we have been through it. If there is ever an opportunity for us to help a military veteran, we've done it for years and years," Carlile said.
Stanton says he’ll do much of the remodel but could probably use a little help.
