We realize most of you didn’t have a clear picture of what was happening in Perryville from August 12th to the 27th.
After the COVID mass testing, women were separated into 2 groups—the ones who tested positive were immediately taken to a separate place for their quarantine, and the negatives stayed where they were for a 14 day in place quarantine. We will describe what it was like for those who tested negative first.
We have two stories, both of which were on a minimum unit. Imagine all the minimum custody inmates cooped up in their respective “aircraft hangers” (Bays), with only 1-to 1 1/2 hours to get outside each day. During that finite time they must fight for phone/kiosk use, medical, and chow.
And they report being yelled at constantly by guards for every little thing, and being herded like cattle. “It was like closed custody”, says one inmate. The war between smokers and nonsmokers were exacerbated by the confinement. Because smokers went as long as 36 hours without being allowed outside—–they smoked in the bathrooms.
Tempers were understandably short. There seemed not to be a cohesive plan of action, the administration just “made it up as they went along. We were worried about our sisters who tested positive. Well, as it turned out, we had a cakewalk compared to them. See our exclusive story of the horrors of quarantine for the sick here: https://www.perryvillewomen.com/2020/08/29/my-piestawa-covid-nightmare/