Prison visits suspended after positive covid test

New entrants housed in separate wing

Visits to the Isle of Man prison have been suspended after an inmate tested positive for coronavirus on Saturday.

The individual has been in self-isolation since their arrest, with all new arrivals at the Jurby facility kept in a separate wing for 14 days, before joining the wider prison population.

Contract tracing teams say the risk to the community is 'extremely low', and are in the process of identifying people who may have come into contact with the infected person.

The Home Affairs Minister Graham Cregeen says suspending prison visits is 'just a precaution, with robust and rigorous protocols are in place to protect prisoners, staff and visitors'.

All prison officers dealing with newly arrived prisoners wear full PPE, and adhere to social distancing and hygiene rules.

The positive test was confirmed on Saturday, bringing the total number of active cases to three - all are in self-isolation.