COVID-19 infections at state prison in Monroe increase to three inmates

The number of inmates infected with COVID-19 has jumped from one to three at the Monroe Correctional Complex.

The state Department of Corrections announced late Tuesday that two male inmates, ages 68 and 28, are infected.

The two inmates were housed in the Minimum Security Unit, which also is the location of the first positive incarcerated individual in the state’s correctional system.

That 49-year-old inmate was transported Sunday to a local hospital for examination and rapid COVID-19 testing, which came back positive, said Susan Biller, the Joint Information Center for the Department of Corrections.

In response to that positive test, the two inmates were transferred to an isolation unit on Sunday, provided COVID-19 testing on-site and the tests were returned as positive on Tuesday.

DOC said there are about 17 inmates in the isolation unit. The 111 incarcerated men who remain in the Minimum Security Unit are on protective isolation or quarantine as a preventative measure, the prison system said.

Additionally, the facility has made housing moves within the unit to further protect the most vulnerable individuals. All individuals in the housing unit where the first positive individual was previously housed continue to have no symptoms of illness or disease (asymptomatic) and are wearing surgical masks for further protection.

All transfers in and out of the Monroe Correctional Complex have ceased, as of Tuesday morning.

Asked if Gov. Jay Inslee is concerned about a potentially widening COVID-19 outbreak at the Monroe Correctional Complex, Inslee spokeswoman Tara Lee said in an email: “We are reviewing all of the options taking into consideration the needs of the incarcerated individuals, community health resources and public safety.”