86-Year-Old Sterling Jail Inmate Dies After Coronavirus Outbreak

STERLING, Colo. (AP) - An 86-year-old inmate at a Colorado prison that is the site of the state's largest coronavirus outbreak died Friday after being hospitalized with symptoms of COVID-19, the state corrections department said.

The department said the inmate from the Sterling Correctional Facility had been taken to the hospital Monday. It did not identify him but said the coroner's office would release his name and cause of death.

According to the state's weekly tally of outbreaks, 252 people — 241 inmates and 11 staff members — have tested positive at the prison. With about 2,500 inmates, it is the state's largest prison.

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After eight inmates were found to have COVID-19, the prison tested 472 inmates on the prison's east side last week in order to isolate those who had the disease and minimize its spread. The inmate who died had been housed in that section of the prison, the department said.

Prisoners are required to wear masks and have been kept in quarantine in their cells since April 14. Meals are delivered and they are only allowed out to use restrooms and showers, according to the department. Inmates on the east side of the prison have their temperature checked twice a day, the department said.

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