COVID outbreak sees North Bay jail closed and 61 inmates moved out

The North Bay jail has been cleared out and temporarily closed as the province tries to stem a COVID-19 outbreak.

The Ministry of the Solicitor General says it has moved 61 inmates to other jails where they can safely isolate from other prisoners, but is not saying exactly where.

The 14-day closure, decided on in consultation with local public health officials,  is also aimed at allowing jail workers to self-isolate so the outbreak doesn't spread further into the community.

So far, 32 inmates and one guard have tested positive at the North Bay jail, while the COVID case count in the Nipissing and Parry Sound districts has risen to 77 in recent days. 

"This temporary closure will allow facility staff to self-isolate and reduce the risk of transmission within the community," reads a statement from the ministry. 

"All appropriate COVID-19 related protocols are in place at the receiving facilities, and the inmates from the North Bay Jail who are COVID-19 positive will be isolated from the rest of the inmate population under droplet precautions at the receiving facilities while they receive appropriate medical care."

Roselle Greuter, president of OPSEU Local 616 representing about 60 workers at the North Bay jail, says the inmates should all be transferred out by the weekend. 

"The staff here are frustrated, we're exhausted, we're stressed. The lack of information coming from management," she says.

In particular, Greuter says she was upset when some managers who work off-site were offered second vaccines before the frontline workers dealing with the outbreak every day.

"When it did come into the jail, it spread like wildfire. We should have had all the equipment that we need to deep clean cells, or deep clean areas," she says. 

"I feel it's a little too late."

Greuter says thankfully no one who has tested positive has severe symptoms so far and she hopes the jail will re-open soon, preferably with fewer inmates.

Sara Berghammer, the CEO of the John Howard Society for Sudbury and North Bay, says this was a good move considering the cramped conditions inside the 90-year-old jail.  

"I actually think it's probably a very good decision by the ministry to do what needs to be done to control the spread," she says. 

"It's just so disappointing that only approximately 40 per cent or so of inmates accepted the vaccination, the first vaccination, in April."

Berghammer says there are a lot of  "conspiracy theories" about the COVID vaccine in the prison population and "the first true step is educating the clients we service," but she says their representatives have not been allowed inside the North Bay jail since the start of the pandemic. 

"Another thing we should be looking at moving forward is whether or not some of these folks can be better served in the community as opposed to holding them in custody, especially if there are issues with overcrowding," she says.