SANTA ANA, Calif. (CNS)—Four more inmates in Orange County’s jails have tested positive for COVID-19, bringing the total to 10 and prompting sheriff’s officials to implement a full quarantine in the men’s and women’s jails, Orange County Sheriff Don Barnes told Orange County supervisors on April 7.
Three men and one woman tested positive on the night of April 6, said Carrie Braun, a spokeswoman for the sheriff’s department.
Sheriff’s officials are awaiting tests on two more inmates, Barnes said.
Nineteen inmates are in “medical isolation,” meaning they are showing symptoms of the virus, Barnes said.
“So far, we have tested 30 individuals who are symptomatic,” Barnes said. “About one in three are coming back positive.”
The sheriff added, “We are isolating anyone that has flu-like symptoms in our jail.”
There are 159 inmates quarantined—meaning they have not shown symptoms, but have come in contact with others who have tested positive, Barnes said.
Two sheriff’s deputies tested positive for COVID-19 last week. One is assigned to Theo Lacy Jail in Orange and the other to the main jail in Santa Ana. Both are recuperating at home.
The sheriff has released 331 inmates shortly before their sentences were up. Of those, 108 were deemed at risk because of their age or underlying health risks. All of the inmates released were serving terms for nonviolent crimes, Barnes said.
The county’s jails housed 5,200 inmates as of March 6, but by April 6 the population was under 4,000, Barnes said.
The total number of confirmed Chinese Communist Party (CCP) virus cases in Orange County increased from 882 on April 6 to 931 on April 7.
The death toll increased from 14 to 15.
The Epoch Times refers to the novel coronavirus, which causes the disease COVID-19, as the CCP virus because the Chinese Communist Party’s coverup and mismanagement allowed the virus to spread throughout China and create a global pandemic.
