Dateline San Carlos:

(letters) SQ said, “Last Saturday night at 8:30 pm I passed out and hit the floor. The only available officers were the Sgt in Control and one other bay guard. They admitted they were severely short-staffed, but one officer was required to stay with the patient until medical arrived, so I was pushed to the Yard Office to wait for nurses from Complex to arrive at Carlos.

Nighttime in Perryville is perilous because the only medical staff are at Complex….no staff at the Units.

I’m 67 years old with a balance problem like many women my age, and I’m terrified of getting up in the middle of the night to use the restroom. Last night I felt myself lose consciousness and slide to the cement in the ADA bathroom stall. When I woke up an hour later I was still there as no officer found me.

What if I would have had a heart emergency like my friend Ericka? We are in the same Bay, and last Thursday her heart started severe fibrillation at 9:30 pm. Ericka’s neighbor, Angel, saw her distress and ran to find help. No officer in C bay, she ran to D bay, no officer there, she pounded on Yard office door, but no response, Angel ran the length of San Carlos to finally find two guards taking a smoke break by the vehicle gate! Ericka was given aid, but as of this letter I don’t know her condition.

Does Judge Silver read your blog? Can she help us? No one else is.”