By MARLENE LENTHANG FOR DAILYMAIL.COM

• he military’s number of coronavirus cases is rising at twice the national rate seeing a 33% spike from July 1 to 10
• The national case growth rate was 16% for that same time period
• Since July 1 over 4,100 service members have tested positive for coronavirus
• In total there are over 18,016 COVID-19 cases in the military with 396 hospitalized and three deaths, as of Monday data
• As of Monday the Army has the highest number of cases at 5,802 infections, followed by the Navy with 4,956 cases and the Air Force with 2,599 cases

The US military’s number of COVID-19 cases is growing at twice the national rate and has surged a staggering 33 percent in 10 days.

Nationally, the US has recorded a coronavirus growth rate of 16 percent from July 1 to July 10, breaking daily records multiple times in that period. The military’s rate for that period was double that.

Since July 1 more than 4,100 service members have tested positive for coronavirus, according to the Defense Department’s latest statistics.

In total there are over 18,016 COVID-19 cases in the military with 396 hospitalized and three deaths, according to latest data as of Monday.

The military’s number of COVID-19 rate is growing at twice the national rate seeing a 33 percent spike from July from July 1 to 10. The national case growth rate was 16 percent for that same time period. A medic with the Louisiana Army and Air National Guard conducts training at a COVID-19 drive thru testing center on March 18 in New Orleans

In total there are over 18,016 COVID-19 cases in the military with 396 hospitalized and three deaths, according to latest data as of Monday

As of Monday the Army has the highest number of cases at 5,802 infections, followed by the Navy with 4,956 cases, the Air Force with 2,599 cases, the National Guard with 2,445 cases and the Marine Corps with 1,992. Department of Defense Agencies have reported 222 cases

Within the Department of Defense there have been 23 civilian deaths, six dependent deaths, and 10 contractor fatalities. The overall number of department cases including contractors, dependents, and civilian members is 25,822.

The infection rate in the military now sits at 0.8 percent, compared to the national rate of 0.9 percent, according to the Military Times.

This is the closest the military’s infection rate has come to the general public’s in the country. It’s also double its rate recorded in mid-June.

Defense officials have attributed the rise in military cases to increased testing and to the lifting of shelter-in-place orders in some force concentration areas.

‘While we are seeing some upticks in the same places there are upticks in the civilian sector, again, that is not necessarily overly surprising, in that we have been doing more testing. And we have been doing testing of those who are asymptomatic,’ assistant defense secretary for health affairs Tom McCaffery told reporters July 1.

However, officials have pointed to states with resurging cases as a factor contributing to rising cases in the military.

Since July 1 through July 10 the number of coronavirus cases in the Air Force, which once boasted the lowest-per-capita infection rate among the services, has jumped 55 percent.

As of Monday there are 2,599 cases of COVID-19 in the Air Force since March.

Back in June the Marine Corps reported infections within the hundreds. Today there are 1,992 cases.

The Navy reported 4,956 cases, the National Guard 2,445, and the Army has the highest number of coronavirus infections with 5,802 cases.

The National Guard, which activated troops in response to national Black Lives Matter protests decrying police brutality, has seen lower infections overall compared to its counterparts.

It’s not clear if local commanders are enforcing strict protective protocals such as social distancing and masks for troops on and off base.

Service members are required by the Department of Defense to practice social distancing and wear face coverings on military property and off base – even in localities that don’t require masks, but it has not been regulated.

The Navy has doubled down with extra precautions banning members from a number of public places including beaches, pools, tattoo parlors, theaters, salons, spas, restaurants and bars.

Nationally there are over 3.3million cases of COVID-19 in the US and over 135,000 deaths.

Two US marine bases in Japan are locked down over soaring coronavirus cases as nearly 100 personnel test positive
Two US Marine bases in Japan’s Okinawa have been put into lockdown after dozens of coronavirus infections, with local officials criticising the American military’s containment efforts.

Additional restrictions are also in place at the seven other Marine bases in the region after the spike in cases, a spokesman confirmed.

There are tens of thousands of US servicemen stationed on the southern Japanese island, which has recorded roughly 150 civilian COVID-19 infections.

Government spokesman Yoshihide Suga said Monday that 63 cases have been detected in recent days among US forces, most of them at US Marine Corps Air Station Futenma and Camp Hansen.

A 2014 photo shows a US Marine refuelling tanker taking off at the Futenma air base, one of a number of US military bases on Japan’s Okinawa island

The Okinawa prefectural government said later in the day they confirmed 32 more cases at Futenma, bringing the total to 95.

In response to the outbreak, ‘enhanced Okinawa-wide protective measures’ were announced for all nine Marine Corps bases in the region, spokesman Major Ken Kunze told AFP.

Those measures include closing non-essential facilities on-base, banning off-base activities and encouraging telework.

‘Additional measures are in place for Camp Hansen and MCAS Futenma to restrict people from entering and leaving those facilities,’ Kunze said.

There are approximately 20,000 US Marines in Okinawa, along with thousands more troops from other US military services.

Their presence on the island is a longstanding sore spot, with many in the region arguing they bear a disproportionate share of the burden of hosting American forces.

The spike in infections has created tensions with local officials, including Okinawa governor Denny Tamaki, who said Saturday he was ‘shocked’ by the number of cases.

‘I can’t help but feel serious doubts about US measures against infections,’ he told reporters.

Tamaki said he has asked US forces to halt the arrival of troops rotating into the country and to boost anti-contagion measures.

It is unclear where the bases’ clusters of infections originated, with Kunze saying an investigation was ongoing.

‘We are also looking into reports of gatherings and directing individuals to quarantine… Leadership in Okinawa is working non-stop to curtail the spread,’ he said.

Local media said there were concerns about incoming troops and their families who are being quarantined in local hotels off-base.

An Okinawa government official said the prefecture would ask the central government and US forces to share information about cases among the military more quickly.

The prefecture will also ask for incoming troops and their families to observe their arrival quarantine on-base, they said.