COVID-19 outbreaks reported at Allegheny County Jail, Westmoreland Prison

PITTSBURGH — The Allegheny County Jail and Westmorland Prison are dealing with coronavirus outbreaks among inmate and staff members.

As of Tuesday, 29 jail employees and 27 inmates were COVID-19 positive, according to a release by Warden Orlando Harper. The employees that tested positive have been quarantined and none is at work. Another 40 employees are also in quarantine as a precaution.

The inmates who tested positive were already quarantined and have been placed in isolation, the warden said. An additional 200 inmates are being quarantined on four housing units.

“We continue to work with employees to ensure the proper staffing for the continued safety and security of everyone at the Allegheny County Jail. And, as we have done throughout this pandemic, we are following the advice of the facility’s medical provider as it relates to precautions for inmates,” Harper said.

A similar outbreak at the Westmoreland County Prison has impacted more than 100 inmates and a number of staffers, according to our partners at the Trib.

Interim Warden George Lawther told the Trib that two units are in lockdown in an attempt to limit the virus from spreading.

Most of the infected inmates have remained in their cells, although 13 are being cared for in the prison’s medical unit, the Trib reported.

“No one has any serious health issues. No one is hospitalized, and our medical personnel is checking on all the inmates,” Lawther told the Trib.