LITTLE ROCK — Visitation hours are canceled at a northeast Arkansas women's prison after a 42-year-old inmate died after suffering from flulike symptoms.
The Arkansas Department of Correction said nearly 900 inmates at the McPherson Unit near Newport were screened for influenza, and two inmates tested positive for the disease. The inmate who died Saturday did not test positive for the flu, but officials say additional tests are pending.
Correction department spokesman Shea Wilson said all inmates have the option of receiving flu vaccines. She said visiting hours will remain canceled at the prison until officials feel it's safe to lift the restriction.
Officials didn't release the name of the inmate who died, but Wilson said the woman was in prison on a first-degree battery conviction.