An Oklahoma prison worker has tested positive for COVID-19, the first case within the state’s department of corrections.
The DOC said the Joseph Harp Correctional Center staff member has not been at the Lexington facility since March 29, when they began exhibiting symptoms.
The state health department has not recommended other employees or inmates there be isolated or quarantined.
There will be more cleaning and sanitizing at Joseph Harp Correctional Center, and each DOC facility will continue to enforce screening protocols when employees report to work. Those include checking temperatures and asking if staff are experiencing a cough or have trouble breathing.
Inmates in Oklahoma Correctional Industries have started making cloth masks and hand sanitizer. All DOC facilities have personal protective equipment, but staff are working around the clock to find additional protective gear, including N95 masks, gowns, and eye protection.
DOC received a shipment of 28,000 face masks from the state health department over the weekend.
