CURRY COUNTY ANNOUNCES COVID CASES AT DETENTION CENTER
Curry County announces that 27 detainees, and 3 detention employees have tested positive for COVID-19. On October 13, 2020, the Detention Center collected 56 COVID-19 test. On October 15, 2020, 27 detainees came back positive and two (2) detention center employees’ tests came back positive. The two (2) employees and they have been off work since October 16, 2020. Of the 27 detainees, 1 detainee has been released and has been contacted. One (1) other detention employee received positive results on October 11, 2020. Since May, 395 employee and 1103 detainee tests have been conducted at the Detention Center with 15 tests pending.
There are currently 170 detainees at the facility, 72 budgeted security staff, as well as 10 contractors. Curry County continues to work with the Department of Health (DOH) and at least 10% of the detainee population and 25% of the staff are tested on a weekly basis. In addition, all new detainee bookings are screened and tested regardless of length of stay before they are moved into general population. Curry County has very strict COVID-19 protocols in place, masks are required to be worn at all times, and all staff are screened. Any employee that experiences symptoms are tested immediately and sent home to quarantine.
This is not just a detention pandemic, this is a community pandemic. The majority of these detainees who are booked into our detention center are Curry County residents. “If our community members are not adhering to mandatory COVID-19 protocols such as wearing masks, sanitation and personal hygiene we cannot mitigate the spread. We are in this fight in combating the pandemic,” said Curry County Detention Administrator Mark Gallegos.
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