May 1, 2020 – The number of Harris County Sheriff’s Office employees diagnosed with coronavirus has reached 238, including 211 who work in the jail.
There are currently 402 Harris County Sheriff’s Office deputies, detention officers and support staff on quarantine for possible COVID-19 exposure.
As of Friday, 289 previously quarantined employees have returned to duty, including 70 who had tested positive for the virus.
Thirteen Sheriff’s Office employees are currently hospitalized because of the virus.
The Sheriff’s Office is working with Harris County Public Health to identify co-workers, inmates, and members of the public who may have had close contact with the diagnosed employees so they can take necessary precautions, including quarantine and testing for those with symptoms.
A recent expansion of testing — which now includes inmates who do not have symptoms of COVID-19 but are believe d to have been exposed to the virus – has helped medical staff identify 411 infected inmates. This number includes 92 inmates who previously tested positive for coronavirus and have now recovered, and 145 inmates who tested positive but have no symptoms.
