The Associated Press

DENVER — Medical staffers based at Colorado’s Fort Carson are being deployed to Washington state to back up doctors and nurses treating coronavirus patients in one of the nation’s hardest hit areas.

More than 300 members of the 627th Hospital Center will head to Washington to provide supplemental routine and emergency medical care to help free up Washington providers to focus on detecting and treating patients believed to have been exposed to COVID-19, Fort Carson announced Tuesday.

The Army post near Colorado Springs did not say when the deployment would happen.

Within hours of deploying, the unit is capable of establishing a 148-bed, full-service hospital even in the most austere conditions, according to The Gazette of Colorado Springs. The hospitals can be in customized tents or repurposed civilian buildings.

In its announcement, Fort Carson warned that the deployment could affect upcoming scheduled appointments for people at Fort Carson’s hospital and the number of people who could be seen by their primary care doctors.

As of Tuesday, Colorado had more than 900 cases of the virus and 11 people have died, according to the state health department.