Chautauqua County Jail. P-J file photo

MAYVILLE — More cases of COVID-19 are expected at the Chautauqua County Jail following an outbreak discovered at the facility this week.

Staff with the county Department of Health spent much of Wednesday testing dozens of inmates, corrections officers and other staff. The county announced that 26 inmates and one staff member were confirmed to have the coronavirus after several individuals began to show symptoms Tuesday morning.

Sheriff James Quattrone said the jail, as of Wednesday afternoon, was housing 194 inmates. The 48 inmates tested Tuesday afternoon and evening were from the same unit within the jail, located at 15 E. Chautauqua St. in Mayville.

By noon Wednesday, two additional staff and six additional inmates had tested positive for COVID-19.

Quattrone said it’s unlikely a new inmate brought the virus into the facility. That’s because all new inmates are put into quarantine for 14 days before they are put into general population.

“It’s likely this was transmitted through staff or providers like mental health,” Quattrone said.

Employees are screened each shift before entering the jail at one point of entry to ensure no one is showing any signs of the virus. The staff is also expected to self-report symptoms and stay home if they feel ill.

To date, the sheriff said only two employees — none who were working at the time — have tested positive for COVID-19. Up until this week, no inmate had come down with the virus.

“We have a great team of doctors and county public health officials giving us guidance on the right procedures to implement,” Quattrone said, noting that staff have been “extremely diligent” in cleaning procedures as well as encouraging those feeling sick to avoid coming into work. “Overall, I think it’s helped keep COVID out and other illnesses out (of the jail).”

In a news release Tuesday evening, Quattrone noted that once the four inmates showed symptoms, disease investigation and contact tracing began. Tests were administered with the help of health department staff, which included the jail’s medical personnel, with assistance from the Chautauqua County Office of Emergency Services.

The sheriff said inmates who tested positive for COVID-19 have been isolated while those who tested negative have been put into quarantine.

“We have actually locked down to limit further transmission,” he said. “We’re kind of in a holding pattern until we can determine how to best house people and where to place them. … We’re very fortunate to have the health department and the public health director and nursing staff putting in the extra time and effort helping to do the tests — working together to get these tests done.”

Jail outbreaks have happened throughout the pandemic. Erie County District Attorney John J. Flynn’s office resumed reviewing cases of those convicted of low-level, non-violence offenses with 45 days or less remaining on their local jail sentences to reduce the inmate population and prevent the further spread of the coronavirus in the county jails.

The decision came after the Erie County Sheriff’s Office announced that 27 inmates housed within a specific area of the Erie County Correctional Facility had tested positive for COVID-19. Flynn’s review found three additional people who could be released from Erie County jails.

Chautauqua County undertook a similar review in late March, with about 30 inmates who were nearing the end of their sentences and who had been convicted of low-level crimes were released. By late March, the population was at about 110 inmates.

Meanwhile, the county Health Department’s update Wednesday reflected the outbreak at the jail. Fifty-seven new cases were reported, with 189 cases considered active. To date, 1,761 cases have been confirmed in the county, with 14 currently in the hospital, as well as 20 deaths. The positivity rate, the number of confirmed cases compared to the total number of tests administered, also climbed according to the county’s COVID-19 dashboard — from 3.7% on Tuesday to 4% on Wednesday.

In Cattaraugus County, health officials reported late Tuesday that two more residents — a 55-year-old woman and a 78-year-old man — have died due to COVID-19 related complications.

In addition, 39 new cases were reported on Tuesday with 352 active. Total cases number 1,177 with 796 recoveries. There are 21 hospitalized.

Warren County in Pennsylvania also continues to see a spike in the number of people testing positive. On Wednesday, 30 new cases were reported, bringing the total to date to 333.