TAVARES, Fla. — At the Lake County Jail, the number of inmates and staff infected with COVID-19 continues to spike.
What You Need To Know
- Lake County Jail master deputy who died was positive for coronavirus
- More than 110 jail inmates have tested positive for COVID-19
- Operational procedures have changed at jail after so many infections
In just one day, the number of inmates who tested positive for the coronavirus jumped from 103 to 111.
Deputies were still mourning one of their own Friday, after it was determined that Master Deputy Lynn Jones died two weeks after receiving news that he tested positive. It's undetermined at this time whether he contracted the virus inside or outside the jail.
Friday would have been Jones's 13th anniversary with the department.
Sheriff's officials said they've changed several policies in order to mitigate the growing number of infections, but there are several challenges involved.
"We don't have that luxury of social distancing. We have a job to do. That person has to be photographed, that person has to be fingerprinted. You're in a pod with 60 plus inmates," said Lake County Sheriff's Sgt. Fred Jones, who is not related to Lynn Jones but said they were friends.
Policy changes at the Lake County jail include: no visitations, no outdoor activities, and no transporting of inmates from other facilities until further notice.
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