A recent surge of coronavirus cases among inmates at Westmoreland County Prison has slowed, officials said Monday.
Warden Bryan Kline said just 13 active cases of the virus remained at the Hempfield lockup, less than a week after the facility saw as many as 29 inmates with new infections.
“It’s all contained to one unit and we’ve canceled that unit’s visits and religious services,” Kline said.
There were nearly 600 inmates in the jail on Monday.
Kline said the latest counts indicated slightly more than 21% of inmates, 128, were fully vaccinated and another 12 had received partial vaccinations. The jail will conduct another vaccine clinic for inmates on Wednesday.
All other mitigation efforts remain in place. Inmates and staff are required to wear masks and new arrivals at the jail are placed in quarantine as a means to prevent the spread of the virus.
Weekly in-person visits have resumed for most inmates, although officials still are encouraging use of the video system that allows inmates to meet remotely with family members and friends.
Commissioners last week agreed to offer free weekly video visits to inmates through the end of the year. Inmates have received free video visits since the onset of the pandemic last year.
