ODOC Staff Member Tests Positive For Coronavirus

A staff member at the Joseph Harp Correctional Center in Lexington, Oklahoma, tested positive for the coronavirus, the Oklahoma Department of Corrections reported Friday.

The staff member had not been in the facility since Sunday morning.

This is the first reported corrections department worker to test positive for the virus.

Based on the timeline of when the staff member last worked, the health department said there was no need for other staff or inmates to quarantine or isolate, the corrections department said.

All facilities have the necessary amount of disinfectant and are instructed to use it liberally, the department said in a news release.

Each facility will continue to enforce screening protocols when employees report to work. Protocols include checking temperatures and asking if staff are experiencing a cough or trouble breathing. 

Masks and hand sanitizer deliveries to the state prisons began Friday.

“Due to the global shortage of protective gear, ODOC inmates working through Oklahoma Correctional Industries are sewing cloth masks to provide a layer of protection from COVID-19,” ODOC Director Scott Crow said in a news release. “Inmates are also gearing up to produce bottles of hand sanitizer, another hard-to-find item on the market.”