» Lorain County Jail working to prevent spread of virus,

The Lorain County Jail is taking precautions to prevent the spread of novel coronavirus.

“We’ve monitored what the (Centers of Disease Control and Prevention) and Ohio Department Of Corrections are doing,” said Lorain County Chief Deputy Dennis Cavanaugh. “The Sheriff (Phil Stammitti) released an operating procedure yesterday.”

Cavanaugh said the change will be at the jail’s sally port.

“We will have (inmates) tested ... and do screenings as they come through the sally port,” he said. “It’s something that is usually done in the booking room ... we’ve just moved it up.”

Cavanaugh said the jail has a good medical team.

“We have physicians assistants and physicians ... swabs will be done by inmates as they come in,” he said. “We will then go into conversation about what to do if it isn’t a local virus.”

Cavanaugh said there are a couple of things the jail will do for someone who is infected with COVID-19.

“We would put them in isolation ... or send them to the hospital,” he said. “Whatever the situation calls for.”

Cavanaugh said the testing for COVID-19 is a different process than what the jail typically does.

“We test for influenza,” he said. “When we test inmates, we will be able to tell if it’s (influenza) or something else.

“We do not have the ability to test for coronavirus. We would have to pass it onto the health department and have that test done (at a hospital).”

Cavanaugh said the jail is trying to stay ahead of the situation and adapt as it continues.

“We are in conversations with the Prosecutor’s Office (Dennis Will), the courts ... it’s constantly involving good lines of communication,” he said.

“We want to continue to keep that line of communication, and if something comes up, we will address it.”