Visiting of Condemned Inmates Resumes at San Quentin

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By Bay City News Service

Administrators at San Quentin State Prison have restored visitation for condemned inmates Thursday in another sign that the prison is slowly returning to normal after an outbreak of Legionnaires disease last week.

Visiting hours for the general inmate population will resume this weekend, and for the first time since the outbreak began Aug. 27, inmates will resume showering in their housing units Friday, the Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation said Thursday afternoon.

As of Thursday, there are seven confirmed inmate cases of Legionnaires disease, a severe form of pneumonia spread by steam, mist or moisture, but no cases among staff, prison officials said. Eighty-five inmates were under observation on Tuesday.

Kitchen operations for preparing inmate meals are expected to resume early next week. Until then, inmates will continue receiving two cold meals and a hot evening meal each day, prison officials said.