Midtown WeWork Member Could Have Been Exposed To Coronavirus

MIDTOWN MANHATTAN, NY — An employee who works out of a Midtown Manhattan coworking space run by the company WeWork could have been exposed to coronavirus and is being self-quarantined, according to the company.

WeWork will keep the Lexington Avenue and East 51st Street office space open despite the worker's potential exposure, a WeWork spokesperson told Patch. The office was given a deep clean with "additional disinfectant measures" overnight on Tuesday.

"On the afternoon of March 3, the WeWork location at 575 Lexington Avenue was notified by an Enterprise member that one of their employees in the building may have had exposure to someone who is believed to have contracted Coronavirus. This person exited the building immediately and will self-quarantine at home for 14 days," a WeWork spokesperson said in a statement.

Members who work out of the Lexington Avenue location were notified of the situation at the office space, a company spokesperson said. The worker being self-quarantined works for the insurance agency Teachers, Insurance and Annuity Association, the New York Post first reported.

WeWork has advised its employees and members at all locations to self-quarantine if they feel symptoms or have traveled to high-risk areas hit hard by the virus.

The New York City area is up to six confirmed coronavirus cases as of Wednesday morning. The wife, son and daughter of the New Rochelle man who was the second confirmed case of the new coronavirus have tested positive for the disease, Gov. Andrew Cuomo said at a Wednesday morning news conference. The man's neighbor who drove him to the hospital also tested positive, Cuomo said.

New York's first case of coronavirus was confirmed Tuesday when a healthcare worker tested positive for the disease after returning from a trip to Iran. The 39-year-old woman was not in serious condition.

Patch asked officials and experts what New Yorkers should be doing as coronavirus spreads. Read the advice here.