New Hampshire State Prison Taking Precautionary Steps to Prevent Spread of Flu

After inmates in three housing units in the New Hampshire State Prison for Men in Concord exhibited symptoms of the flu the New Hampshire Department of Corrections announces it has taken precautionary steps to prevent it from spreading.

Effective through noon Jan. 26, all visits to the Concord facility as well as the Secure Psychiatric Unit/Residential Treatment Unit are cancelled.

At that time prison administrators will assess the status of the situation and determine whether to extend the cancellation or reopen the visiting room.

The North Yard, where New Hampshire Correctional Industries and many recreation activities occur, is closed. Classes in the Corrections Special School District are cancelled including the Career and Technical Education classes that occur in the North Yard. All volunteer-run and Chapel activities are also cancelled. All mental health treatment groups are cancelled. The Department is restricting the transportation of inmates between facilities.

Three housing unit areas are currently quarantined this time. In addition, a large room in the prison is being temporarily converted to allow the Department to quarantine infected inmates and isolate them from the rest of the population

Division of Medical/Forensic Services staff will provide appropriate treatment to all inmates that exhibit symptoms of the flu. The nurses and other staff are trained to use precautions to protect themselves from the spread of the flu. Personal protective equipment will be provided as necessary to staff and offenders to assist in decreasing the spread of influenza.

The New Hampshire Adult Parole Board announced that all scheduled parole hearings for January 22, 2015 are cancelled.

Department of Corrections Commissioner William L. Wrenn said, “The flu can spread rapidly in prison due to the large number of inmates confined together in close proximity of each other and it is important take these steps to protect the inmate population, our staff, and the general public.”

The restrictions on movement, visits, and activities do not include the New Hampshire State Prison for Women in Goffstown, the Northern New Hampshire Correctional Facility in Berlin, or the four Transitional Housing Units.

Submitted text.