NewsCoronavirus

Actions

Union rep says nearly a third of inmates at Virginia prison facility have virus

Posted
and last updated

HOPEWELL, Va. -- A prison staff union representative says that nearly a third of inmates at a federal correction facility in Virginia have tested positive for the coronavirus.

The Richmond Times-Dispatch reported Wednesday that the outbreak is at the Federal Correctional Institution Petersburg complex.

It includes a work camp as well as a low- and medium-security prisons in Prince George County.

Michael A. Castelle Sr., a union representative for the facility’s prison staff, shared an email with the newspaper from a prison official that said that 60 of 187 inmates are currently positive.

A Bureau of Prisons spokesperson said that federal facilities have set aside areas for isolation and are following Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guidelines.