Miranda Alam/Special to The Sun
Metro Police Corrections Officers Fitzgerald and Kemp assist the medical staff distributing medication to inmates at the Clark County Detention Center in downtown Las Vegas on Wednesday, May 16, 2018.
Tuesday, March 10, 2020 | 4 p.m.
Screenings, additional sanitation and education are some of the procedures Metro Police have implemented to try to keep the coronavirus away from the Clark County Detention Center, the agency announced today.
Inmates booked at the jail are being individually screened for “potential exposure,” police said in a news release. There are protocols to isolate inmates with symptoms for a “proper treatment plan in the event of an exposure.”
The jail is in communication with the Southern Nevada Health District.
Those who don’t have symptoms, but have a history of travel where they could’ve contracted COVID-19, will continue to be screened by medics for two weeks.
The disease caused by the virus has spread across about 100 countries, infecting 116,000 people and claiming 4,000 lives. Two people in Washoe County also have tested positive.
Corrections officers have received training on symptoms to look for when inmates appear sick.
Signs have been posted near sinks to educate inmates and staff on proper handwashing techniques. Additionally, inmates have been educated on the “importance of recommended sanitation practices.”
Cleaning and sanitation of the facility by staff and inmates has also increased, employing practices recommended by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Inmate visits are already limited to video conferences with the exception of legal counsel and authorities. The general population doesn’t have access to the inmates, and visitations, which are conducted at the lobby haven’t been canceled.
“Visitation would only be canceled in the event there is a concern for the general public, or there is a safety and/or security threat at the jail,” police said.
