Two law enforcement workers test positive for coronavirus in Columbus
A Columbus police officer and a Muscogee County reserve deputy have tested positive for the COVID-19 virus.
Police Chief Ricky Boren said the officer has been at home and under a physician’s care. The chief declined to identify the employee or say to which division the person was assigned.
The test result was reported to the department over the weekend, and confirmed on Monday morning, Boren said. The department will follow Centers for Disease Control guidelines in handling the case.
The police department has a total of 488 full-time positions for sworn officers, and currently has between 408 to 410 on staff, the chief said.
He said no other Columbus officers have been removed from duty for testing positive for the novel coronavirus.
The deputy
Sheriff Donna Tompkins said the reserve deputy tested positive for the virus on Friday, and has been in self-quarantine with two other employees who had been in close contact with the deputy. The other two have shown no symptoms, she said.
All are part-time workers expected to be back on the job April 13, she said.
The reserve deputy had been working in the Columbus Government Center at 100 10th St., but has not been there since March 27, the sheriff said. The deputy could have had contact with the general public, but became ill after the city had instituted safety procedures to reduce foot traffic through the center and to regularly disinfect surfaces people typically touch.
The Government Center once had up to 1,200 visitors daily. Tompkins said that dropped to 250, during the coronavirus emergency. The city since has shut off public access to the complex.
The sheriff would not identify the deputy nor specify the deputy’s work assignment. The office has 327 uniformed officers.
Tompkins also is responsible for the Muscogee County Jail, which had an inmate test positive for the disease last week. The inmate’s condition since has improved.
She said all inmates in the jail have been screened, and a few with a “low-grade fever” were separated from the rest, but their temperatures since have returned to normal.
Meanwhile the jail population continues to drop, reaching a low of 899 over the weekend. Once overcrowded, the jail on Monday held 906, Tompkins said. It has a capacity for 1,069.
To try to stop the virus’ spread, Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp last week issued a “shelter in place” order for state residents. City leaders later announced Columbus was closing local government buildings to the public.
As of noon Monday, Georgia reported 7,314 cases of COVID-19 with 229 deaths statewide. Muscogee County reported 40 cases.
This story was originally published April 6, 2020 at 3:24 PM.