Inmate at women’s prison infected; outbreak grows to 110

An incoming inmate at the Vermont women’s prison has tested positive for COVID-19, Human Services Secretary Mike Smith said Monday.

The case at the Chittenden Regional Correctional Facility was detected on Saturday and the inmate had contact with staff and some inmates but not the general prison population, Smith said.

Contract tracing is taking place and those who had contact with the infected inmate are being isolated, he said.

Meanwhile, all staff and inmates at the Marble Valley Regional Correction Facility in Rutland tested negative over the weekend for the illness caused by the coronavirus after an inmate became infected, Smith said. All staff and inmates will be tested again in a week.

In other coronavirus developments:

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THE NUMBERS

The number of COVID-19 cases linked to an outbreak in Winooski and Burlington rose over the weekend by 22 to 110, according to Health Commissioner Dr. Mark Levine.

The median age is 24, and 65% of the cases are in adults and 35% in children, he said. Only 30% reported symptoms, he said. A total of 126 contacts have been associated with the cases and 19 of those people have become infected, he said.

The outbreak is not fully contained, yet, Levine said.

“Until we really don’t have anything new associated with it it’s not 100% over. But clearly we’ve received incredible compliance by all who’ve been affected by this and there’s every indication it’s going in the right direction,” he said.

The Health Department is also doing small investigations in Rutland and Windsor counties and has set up pop-up testing sites there, he said. He wouldn’t characterize the cases only to say that the Health Department knows of two affected people in Rutland County but others may have symptoms and two infected adults and four children in Windham County.

While the state had no current hospitalizations for COVID-19 and the number of deaths remained steady at 56, Levine warned that the virus has not gone anywhere.

“We need to continue to be vigilant, cautious and protective of the most vulnerable in our society and in our own families,” he said.

Vermont reported four new cases on Monday for a total of 1,163; 926 people have recovered.

“With no current hospitalizations and no major growth in our deaths we are showing what our state and its citizens are truly capable of but we can’t let up,” Levine said.