After six weeks with no inmates testing positive for coronavirus in any of the state’s correctional facilities, the Delaware Department of Correction (DOC) Friday announced it is tracking a new cluster of positive cases among the inmate population at Sussex Correctional Institution (SCI) in Georgetown.
It marks the first sign of the disease at SCI since the pandemic started in early March. Sussex County is seeing an outbreak of Covid-19 in the past couple of weeks. The institution escaped an earlier outbreak that was centered in the Georgetown.
After three inmates at SCI this week showed symptoms of COVID-19 infection and tested positive, the DOC immediately initiated contact tracing to identify, isolate and test individuals who came into sustained contact with these inmates. As a result, an additional 22 inmates have tested positive.
“This is why we continue to contact trace, proactively test, and closely monitor our inmate population as part of our comprehensive COVID-19 mitigation strategy to guard against the spread of the novel coronavirus,” Commissioner Claire DeMatteis said.
Twenty of the latest test results at SCI came from rapid COVID testing employed by DOC in collaboration with the Delaware Division of Public Health. Of the 25 current COVID-positive inmates across Delaware’s correctional system, 17 are asymptomatic and 8 are symptomatic. Twenty-three have been transferred to the JTVCC COVID-19 Treatment Center, while two are being treated in stable condition in area hospitals.
Contact tracing and proactive inmate testing are continuing at SCI, including twice-daily temperature checks and screenings for more inmates in three housing areas.
The DOC is taking the following additional mitigation measures at that facility:
Currently nine DOC staff across all DOC facilities and one healthcare contractor assigned to a DOC facility have tested positive for COVID-19, while 87 DOC staff and healthcare contractors assigned to DOC facilities have recovered from the illness.
