EL PASO, Texas (Border Report) — COVID-19 cases exploded Friday at hotspots in the El Paso-Juarez region.
The Rogelio Sanchez Unit of the Texas Department of Justice reported the biggest spike, with 52 new cases among inmates from Thursday to Friday.
The state jail in Far East El Paso now hast 227 active cases among inmates and 11 among employees. Thirty-nine inmates have recovered from the illness as have eight employees, according to the TDCJ website.
In Juarez, the number of inmates with COVID-19 doubled at the Cereso 3 state prison, Chihuahua state health authorities confirmed. The jail was dealing with an outbreak that claimed the life of one inmate and infected 10 others. On Friday, health officials said 20 prisoners are now infected.
Officials have turned the prison’s rec room into a temporary infirmity and confinement area for COVID-19 patients. No new deaths were reported.
At the Leona Vicario federal shelter, were more than 300 Central and South American migrants are waiting their day in U.S. immigration court, nine guests were found to be infected. Last week, Mexican officials said a family of three tested positive for the virus and was isolated. On Friday, the number of infections went up to 12.
At the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) processing center 27 infections were reported Friday, five more than the previous day.