Case of COVID-19 confirmed at Edmonton Remand Centre

A positive case of COVID-19 has been confirmed at the Edmonton Remand Centre, AHS said Wednesday morning.

The inmate has been isolated and a statement to Global News says there is no evidence of transmission of the novel coronavirus within the jail.

According to AHS, the inmate was admitted on June 30 and was asymptomatic.

He was swabbed by AHS while being admitted and was placed into a 14-day quarantine, being checked daily by AHS staff, as is protocol.

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On July 11, the inmate displayed a symptom of COVID-19 and was moved to isolation and tested again. The positive status was confirmed on Wednesday and he remains in isolation.

As an added precaution, transfers out of the remand centre have been suspended for the remainder of the day.

While this is the first confirmed case of COVID-19 in an inmate in an Edmonton correctional facility, it’s not the first case in Alberta.

On May 8, Alberta’s chief medical officer of health said an inmate in the Calgary Remand Centre had tested positive.

Then, in early June, an inmate tested positive at the Lethbridge Correctional Centre.