A prison guard in the Seysses remand center.

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FRED SCHEIBER / 20 MINUTES

  • With five positive cases for Covid-19 detected in the Seysses remand center, the health authorities have decided to conduct a massive screening of staff and inmates.

  • Nearly 500 people are due to be tested over the next few days.

A large part of the staff and inmates of the Seysses remand center, south of Toulouse, are being screened today and tomorrow.

This campaign follows the discovery at the end of last week of several positive cases for Covid-19: three among the agents and two cases among the 900 detainees.

A cluster more complicated to manage than in a family circle given the closed context and the density of population in this prison establishment.

Nearly 500 people will be screened in the coming days.

“We cannot screen the entire prison, ie 1,500 people, but we will screen those at high risk.

That is to say 115 people in priority who had a prolonged contact, in particular the canteens, supervisors and supervisors, as well as 374 inmates, ”explains Laurent Poquet, director of the departmental delegation of the Regional Health Agency (ARS).

“The health protocol put in place has proven to work until today.

All incarcerated inmates have been tested since the start of the crisis in the new arrivals district.

If they are positive, they are tested again 7 days later.

In the context of these cases, the objective is to stem the contamination ”, indicates Laurens Maffre, Ufap union representative who participated this Tuesday morning in a meeting of the health, safety and working conditions committee where the issue was been addressed.

No new entries pending

Since Monday, measures have been taken to avoid any new case, explains Ufap.

Thus, the detainees who were to be imprisoned are sent back to Montauban or Béziers, even the staff mess is closed for a period of fifteen days.

If the solution is to test and isolate positive detainees, for the Ufap union, wearing a mask when detainees are in contact with the outside is also a solution.

However, the Council of State has just indicated in a decision that the supply of masks was not an obligation for the prison administration.

"It is a little out of step with reality, even if it is certain that if we provide two per day to the detainees it will have a certain cost", agrees the union representative.

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  • Screening

  • Jail

  • Inmates

  • Health

  • Covid 19

  • Coronavirus

  • Toulouse