Fayette County jail stops visits after positive COVID-19 tests

The Fayette County Prison will halt visitation for two and a half weeks after Fayette County officials said several officers and prisoners have tested positive for COVID-19.

Fayette County District Attorney Richard Bower said Friday three correctional officers and two prisoners have tested positive for COVID-19. County prison board officials were made aware of the outbreak Tuesday and started to implement a new plan of procedures Wednesday.

Impacted correctional officers have been quarantining at home, and the impacted inmates have been placed in a special area where they are away from others. The prison is also holding new inmates in a separate section of the facility known as Range D for a 14-day quarantine before moving into the general population, Mr. Bower said.

The facility is sanitizing commonly touched surfaces such as switches and door handles, as well as observing social distancing protocols. Also, all inmates and staff must wear personal protective equipment, Mr. Bower

said. Staff and inmates are to use gowns and face shields in areas of close contact. The county also received new decontamination units by AeroClave this week that were originally purchased in March. One of the units will be used to clean the prison and inmate transport vehicles.

“It’s interesting and from what I’m understanding it works really well,” Mr. Bower said. In addition to sanitizing the facility, Mr. Bower said all 150 inmates, 60 correctional officers and staff, and five other employees will be tested for COVID19. Testing started on Thursday. Contact tracing will be used for staff and inmates who test positive.

In addition to an adjustment to cleaning procedures, the prison has suspended visitation and public admittance into the facility for at least two and a half weeks. Inmates will instead teleconference with family members, attorneys and bail bondsmen. Those allowed to enter and exit the prison will be limited to correctional officers and other staff.

Mr. Bowers said the district attorney’s office is halting in-person preliminary hearings for inmates from the jail. For inmates who waive their right to be present physically at their preliminary hearings, Mr. Bower said the hearing can occur virtually on Skype or Zoom.

“I think in these uncertain times, obviously you can’t predict what’s going to happen. I think with all the protocols we put in place and all the methods we’ve tried to do with face masks, hand sanitizer, all the things the CDC is telling us to do, and everything we’ve already implemented, everything we’re doing should help,” Mr. Bower said.