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Two more staff workers at the Northwest State Correctional Facility in Swanton have tested positive for Covid-19 putting the entire facility on lockdown as officials there work to control the spread of the virus.
The Department of Corrections issued a statement early Monday afternoon stating that a staff member at the prison was showing Covid-19 symptoms and had tested negative for the convirus but was awaiting results of a second test as those symptoms persisted.
At around 8:45 p.m. Monday the department issued a second statement saying that the staff member has since tested positive for Covid-19, the disease caused by the coronavirus. That staff member was last in the facility on March 26, and began to show symptoms March 28, according to the corrections department.
In addition, the corrections department announced Monday night that another staff member at the Swanton prison has tested positive for the coronavirus. That person, according to the statement, was last in the facility on Friday, April 3.
In the earlier statement Monday, the corrections department reported that the Swanton prison was on a “modified lockdown.” Following the two positive results later Monday the facility has since moved to a total lockdown, according to the statement.
“A full lockdown is a controlled measure to mitigate any further spread of the virus throughout the facility,” according to the statement. “Inmates will remain in their cells, essential services, meals, and medication will be brought to them and movement will be restricted except for emergency and hygiene purposes.”
The statement issued Monday by the corrections department did not say what specific jobs the two staffers who tested positive held at the facility.
Interim Corrections Commissioner James Baker in an email Monday night said he would elaborate on the statement during a briefing with the media Tuesday morning.
With the two more recent positive test results brings the total of staff at the Swanton facility who have tested positive for Covid-19 to three, and the total number of corrections staff across the state system to four.
Last week, the corrections department reported that a staff person at the Swanton facility had tested positive for Covid-19, but said that person hadn’t been in the facility for a number of days prior to that positive test and had limited contact with inmates.
Two weeks ago, the department announced that a corrections staff member at the Newport prison had tested positive for the coronavirus. In that case, officials said that person did not have contact with inmates.
The Northwest State Correctional Facility in Swanton has staff of 123 and an inmate population of a little under 200.
As of Monday afternoon, no Vermont inmates had tested positive for Covid-19.
Steve Howard, executive director of the Vermont State Employees’ Union, said Monday night that the latest positive test for staff raises several questions.
“One of the things that I feel we need to get a better handle on is how readily available is it for people to wear personal protective equipment now to stop the spread of the virus,” Howard said.
“My focus for tomorrow is to really get a sense of what is happening at 24/7 facilities,” he added. “We need to find out what departments have, not just in stockpiles, but what is being available to people.”
