“It was only a matter of time:” Mayor confirms COVID-19 outbreak at Orange County Jail

Orange County, Fla. According to Mayor Jerry Demings, dozens of inmates at the Orange County Jail tested positive for COVID-19.

The Orange County mayor confirmed the outbreak during a press conference on Thursday, saying 33 inmates had tested positive for the new coronavirus.

“You’ve heard me say this before the Orange County Jail is a microcosm of Orange County in general,” said Demings. “Well, you know, with law enforcement officers arresting people in the community and taking them to jail, we knew it was only a matter of time before we had cases in our jail.”

Demings said they received 529 new test results for inmates on Wednesday. Of those tests that yielded positive results, Demings said only one inmate was symptomatic, meaning the other two had no symptoms of the virus. In addition, the mayor said that four of the inmates who tested positive had already been released from prison.

“Because this is a local jail, the overwhelming majority of people who are booked into our jail are only there for a short period of time. They are not there for long periods of time, “he said.

As of Thursday, Demings said more than 2,800 tests had been performed on inmates. Demings said they are still waiting for 150 test results.

The mayor also said Thursday that the county plans to evaluate the entire population in custody next week. Demings said there are more than 2,100 inmates at the Orange County Jail.

Orange County Chief of Corrections Louis A. Quiñones, Jr. said the jail regularly examines new inmates for COVID-19 during the reservation process, but that the tests are voluntary, which means inmates they may refuse to take one.

Quiñones said prisoners also receive a COVID-19 questionnaire during the reservation process.

“It is a questionnaire and what happens is that when they arrest the individual, we ask him certain questions. We ask them if they have traveled to certain places, whether they have tested positive or not, “said Quiñones.

According to Quiñones, the new inmates are also quarantined in an effort to minimize the risk of the virus spreading.

“So what we do is when they first enter, we put them in what we call a quarantined housing unit. And that is from 14 to 30 days. In this way, it goes through the incubation period, even before we locate them in the general population, “said Quiñones.

Quiñones said they also educate inmates and jail employees about COVID-19 security measures by posting signs encouraging them to practice social distancing. Staff members should wear masks and inmates are asked to cover their faces when possible, according to Quiñones.

In addition to those security measures, Quiñones said the jail has prevented all nonessential visitors from entering the building and requires anyone who does so to submit to a temperature check.

During the same update Thursday, Dr. Raúl Pino, with the Florida Department of Health in Orange County, confirmed a “significant” outbreak of COVID-19 at an assistance center in Ocoee.

According to Pino, 66 residents and 30 staff members at the Ocoee Health Center had tested positive for the new coronavirus.

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