The coronavirus continues to threaten the lives of those in congregated settings, particularly in Arkansas prisons, officials said this week.
During Gov. Asa Hutchinson's weekly covid-19 update on Tuesday, Arkansas Department of Correction Secretary Solomon Graves echoed the governor's words, telling staff members and inmates within the correctional facilities "do not grow weary".
"This covid-19 pandemic has lasted longer than any of us would have wanted," said Graves. "There is hope in the future as a result of vaccines and other medical developments specific to covid, but we must continue to be vigilant with the wearing of our face coverings, with sanitation, with basic cough hygiene -- those little things that we have heard so much of in the past few months"
The virus continues to impose challenges for the Correction Department. Referring to the 379 active cases, Graves said that number is down from its peak of 1,001 that was reported in July.
Currently, seven inmates are in the hospital and two inmates are on ventilators.
A total of 39 inmates have died from virus-related illnesses. According to Graves, 36 inmates died in the hospital and three died in a correctional facility.
As of Sept. 18, Arkansas is sixth in the country for virus-related cases among inmates in state prisons and ranked ninth for inmate deaths, according to data collected by the Marshall Project, which tracks and regularly updates prisoner information affected by the pandemic.
The latest numbers for the Department of Correction are from Benton Work Release, Central Arkansas Community Correction Center, Cummins, Ester, Grimes, McPherson, Maximum Security Unit, Omega, Ouachita River Correctional, Pine Bluff Unit, Varner and Wrightsville facilities. Staff information represents employees from sites within the system and reflects employees who have returned to work.
As of Tuesday, the department's Barbara Ester Unit in Pine Bluff had 70 cumulative positive inmates and six cumulative staff members with one new resident testing positive this week, according to a congregated-setting report released by the state Department of Health.
The report also shows 199 cumulative positive inmates and six cumulative staff members and 81 new positive cases at the Pine Bluff Unit/PB Re-entry. The Tucker Max Unit had one staff member and 28 inmates total that were positive with no new cases recorded.
In June, Graves had to suspend intakes at the Ouachita River Unit after an outbreak, which is now under control.
Inmates who enter a correctional facility are being held in quarantine for 14 days.
"During the course of their 14-day quarantine, they will be tested at a minimum of three times," said Graves. "One of them upon intake, one at the approximate halfway point and the final test being administered about two or three days before they complete their 14-day quarantine."
Any inmates who test positive are held in isolation for an additional period of time along with those inmates who were exposed to them. Graves said inmates will be tested before they are released on parole or their sentences are discharged.
The nature of prisons is making it hard to defeat a virus taking the lives of so many prisoners. New cases among prisoners reached an all-time high in early August after slowing down in June, according to the Marshall Project.
The group reports the growth in recent weeks was driven by big jumps in prisoners testing positive in Florida, California and the federal Bureau of Prisons as well as outbreaks in Arkansas, Hawaii and Oklahoma.
There have been at least 125,730 cases of coronavirus reported among prisoners with 102,732 prisoners recovered. In Arkansas, according to the Correction Department, 16,928 inmates have been tested.
Out of those whose results were positive 5,767 are recovered while 183 have not. The number of staff members tested has been 5,114 with 399 recovered and 55 who have not.
Experts who work with the Marshall Group offered prison and jail adaptations for prisoners to help protect them from the virus. Suggestions include:
• Keep warm water by filling bottles in the shower specifically for hand-washing.
• Insulate buckets of warm water with blankets and towels for longer-lasting use.
• Remain 6 feet apart in the shower or wash up in a cell's sink using soap, water and a rag.
• Clean the seat and flush handle with diluted bleach before and after toilet use
To prevent people from coughing and sneezing on one another, suggestions include asking a correctional officer for permission to cover the bars with a clean sheet before bed. In double-bunked dorms, it is suggested that people at the bottom hang the barrier from the top bunk to create a tent.
Experts suggest that inmates using community phones wash their hands before and after the call and cover the receiver with a clean sock or cloth. They suggest that inmates wear gloves when handling commissary packages, and wash their hands after.
"We know ... we are essential to saving the lives of all of our loved ones," said Graves, "especially in my case for those men and women who are housed within our facilities."