350 tests pending after COVID-19 outbreak hits George County jail, sheriff says
A coronavirus outbreak has hit the George County jail, where six state prisoners and seven corrections officers have tested positive for COVID-19.
Sheriff Keith Havard said Tuesday he expects the number of new coronavirus cases at the jail to only increase once they get the results of additional tests performed on over 300 other state inmates and about 50 other county prisoners.
In addition, Havard said, tests results are pending for additional jail employees and administrative staff, including himself.
“An employee brought it in more than likely,” Havard said Tuesday. “That was the first one to test positive. We’ve limited movement in the jail since then and are trying to keep everybody as safe as we possibly can be to curb the spread of the virus.”
So far, none of the sick inmates have been hospitalized, but instead are isolated in their cells and receiving appropriate treatment, Havard said.
The Mississippi Department of Corrections conducted the initial tests, the sheriff said, but officials with the state’s health department came in Friday to perform the other 350-plus tests.
Those results were expected to be returned within a week.
Meanwhile, the jail has had a deep cleaning and in-person visitation is temporarily suspended
In addition, inmates are required to wears mask if they move outside the area in the jail where they are being housed.
All staff are required to wear masks and gloves on site.
Since the first COVID-19 diagnosis in Mississippi in March, the state has seen a drastic increase in cases.
On Tuesday, the Mississippi State Department of Health reported a total of 53,588 confirmed cases of new coronavirus and 1,504 deaths.
Of those, 256 cases and 5 deaths were attributed to COVID-19 in George County.
According to MDOC, a total of 109 state inmates have tested positive for the virus.
Here’s a breakdown of total cases for each facility:
- 5 — Mississippi State Prison at Parchman
- 39 — Central Mississippi Correctional Facility at Pearl
- 9 — East Central Correctional Facility in Meridian
- 1 —Bolivar County Correctional Institute
- 1 — Washington County Correctional institute
- 2 — Carroll-Montgomery County Correctional Facility
- 14 — Marion-Walthall County Correctional Facility
- 18 — Winston-Choctaw County Correctional Facility
- 3 — Delta Correctional Facility
- 11 — Tallahatchie County Correctional Facility
- 6 — George County Regional Correctional Facility
This story was originally published July 28, 2020 at 1:06 PM.
