More than 100 inmates test positive for virus at area jail

Outbreak took place at Western Tidewater Regional Jail in Suffolk

More than 100 inmates and six staff members and contractors have tested positive for COVID-19 at Western Tidewater Regional Jail, according to a news release.

On Sept. 8, an inmate tested positive and once additional inmates also tested positive, the jail and the Virginia Department of Health tested all inmates and staff at the facility.

After the initial case, about 30 more inmates tested positive, Superintendent William C. Smith said.

He said they isolated it to one area of the jail, but they decided to test everyone once there was a case in a different housing area.

On Sept. 30, 109 of the 756 inmates tested positive, according to the release. Of the 180 staff and contractors, six tested positive.

Staff isolated those who tested positive from the general population, and the jail is on lockdown status, according to the release.

“At this point, we’re confident we have it pretty well contained,” Smith said.

The inmates who tested positive are checked on several times per day, there are extra water and liquids to keep them hydrated, Smith said.

No inmates have gone to the hospital and there is medical staff in the facility every day, he said.

The six staff members who tested positive were asymptomatic, Smith said. After they began quarantining, two started feeling mild symptoms, he said.

In Virginia, 5,798 people have tested positive in correctional facilities and 26 have died from COVID-19, as of Monday morning, according to the Virginia Department of Health.