Thirty Monterey County Jail inmates had tested positive for Covid-19 as of Monday, Sept. 13. As of late Thursday, four days later, that number grew by 100 to 130 inmates, according to the Monterey County Sheriff's Office. One inmate has been hospitalized.
The total number of people inside the jail who have tested positive in the last couple of weeks has risen to 152. Of those, 17 are deputies—one more since Monday's report—and five are contractors.
On Monday the Sheriff's Office announced all jail visitation was suspended, including in-person meetings with attorneys. The jail has also returned to Zoom court appearances, among other precautions to prevent the spread of Covid.
"We're taking every precaution," says Cmdr. Derrel Simpson. "We're listening to the state health officers guidance."
Earlier this year the county stopped providing Covid case numbers for the jail to the public when it ceased issuing its Daily Situational Report. The data wasn't available elsewhere online since then. Simpson says they are working on posting jail case numbers online once again as early as this afternoon or Monday.