by SHAREFIL GAILLARD
St. Lucia (Loopnews) – At least 23 inmates of the Bordelais Correctional Facility (BCF) are awaiting COVID-19 test results after an officer tested positive for the virus, according to Prison Director Hilary Herman.
“We do have an officer who tested positive for COVID-19, she has been in quarantine since January 14, she worked in the kitchen,” Herman disclosed today.
Herman told Loop News that all employees and inmates from the kitchen who have come into contact with the infected person have been identified and are in isolation awaiting testing.
The situation, according to Herman, has created some anxiety among the employees and the rest of the prison population.
“There is always a concern, I mean it is an unknown and we basically have a reflection of what is in our community.
We have to remember all of the hotspot communities that we have in Saint Lucia, our staff live there so we not really concerned about inmates because we have very little movement of our inmates,” the prison chief said, explaining that some of the measures taken to protect the prison include having virtual court sittings and Zoom calls for families rather than in-person visits.
“We put in all the requirements of the Ministry of Health, including washing stations throughout the facility, all the inmates and employees have masks most of which are made in our tailor shop, we take temperatures before employees come into the facility, sanitize stations on all the units, that’s why we’ve been able to keep it out for so long,” Herman said.
He noted that prevention measures would be intensified and that the department is committed to the wellbeing of offenders and officials of the prison.
The kitchen, he said, was deep cleaned and sanitized to ensure continuity, however, the inmates, catering manager and three civilian cooks will receive their results sometime next week.
