In an unusual and dramatic move, the Pennsylvania Department of Corrections Wednesday ordered all 25 state prisons to be locked down after unknown substances sickened more than two dozen employees at multiple institutions throughout the state in recent weeks.
Corrections Secretary John Wetzel also halted all inmate visits and closed corrections department mailrooms to non-legal mail. Meanwhile, Pennsylvania State Police continued their investigation, racing to identify the mystery substances and how they entered the prison system.
“The safety and security of our employees is my No. 1 concern,” Mr. Wetzel said in a statement. “Our state prisons, especially those in the western part of the state, have experienced recent incidents in which employees have been sickened, and we need to get to the bottom of this issue now.”
During a lockdown, inmates are restricted to their cells 24 hours a day.
Susan McNaughton, the department's spokeswoman, said in nearly 34 years with the agency she cannot recall such a widespread clampdown on prisoners.
"This lockdown is unique," Ms. McNaughton said.
Gov. Tom Wolf seemed to link the problems to "the emerging issue of synthetic drugs in our prison system," according to a statement. "Today’s action to lock down all of the state’s correctional facilities is a necessary step to ensure the safety of our officers and provide the department the opportunity to assess and control the situation."
The move -- which came on the same day that 29 people took ill after a substance exposure at an Ohio state prison in Chillicothe, south of Columbus -- was applauded by the corrections officers' union and several state legislators.
Rep. Pam Snyder, D-Greene, said she was in the middle of touring State Correctional Institution Fayette -- the site of two separate exposure incidents Saturday -- to hear safety concerns when the lockdown took effect. She said she also visited SCI Greene Tuesday, the same day an employee there was sickened.
“As an elected official who’s in constant contact with those who work at the two large state prisons in the 50th Legislative District, I am well aware of staff’s safety concerns,” Rep. Snyder said. “Recently, corrections officers at both of these facilities were sickened by some unknown substance. These prisons should remain on lockdown until the DOC gets to the bottom of what’s going on and can implement changes.”
Rep. Snyder, along with Rep. Mike Hanna, D-Clinton, and Rep. Neal Goodman, D-Schuylkill, said they had sent Gov. Tom Wolf a letter earlier Wednesday calling for a statewide lockdown until his administration implements security overhauls.
Rep. Cris Dush, R-Jefferson, a retired state corrections officer, called the situation a "state of emergency" and urged Mr. Wetzel to commit to thorough searches of state prisons for contraband.
"Searches take time and a lot of effort," Rep. Dush said. "Let staff take the time and do it right. Do not rush them through for the sake of getting things 'back to norrmal.' "
A daily incident log published online by the corrections department showed that 29 employees have become ill at eight different institutions since Aug. 6 with a variety of symptoms including lethargy, light-headedness, elevated heart rate, high blood pressure, feeling flushed or dazed and exhibiting bumps along the hairline.
On Wednesday, the department announced that two officers from SCI Somerset were taken to the hospital after becoming "dazed and lethargic" after escorting an inmate to the prison’s medical department. An officer at SCI Greene was taken to a hospital Tuesday evening. Two officers were treated at SCI Fayette over the weekend, with one going to the hospital Saturday and another being treated earlier in the day with an opioid-reversal drug.
The Pennsylvania State Police are testing samples.
Last week, Amy Worden, another corrections department spokeswoman, told The Associated Press that state police investigators were testing a substance, which she described as a “liquid synthetic drug that’s taking different forms.” The substances was believed to have been involved in three incidents at facilities in Fayette, Greene and Mercer counties that sickened 18 employees between Aug.6 and Aug. 13.
"Our criminal investigators are working with DOC officials to investigate any criminal wrongdoing and share information. Maximum precautions are taken anytime a hazardous substance is involved that has sickened people," Cpl. Adam Reed said. "I can’t comment right now on whether any samples were retrieved. However, identifying that substance would be a primary focus."
Mr. Wetzel announced several measures in addition to the lockdown, all of which are indefinite and take immediate effect. They include mandatory use of personal protective equipment by employees and training on situational awareness.
The department advised staff to use extra caution when dealing with parole violators and new inmates.
The president of the Pennsylvania State Corrections Officers Association, which has about 11,000 members, lauded the decision.
“The Pennsylvania State Corrections Officers Association commends the Wolf administration for locking down all state correctional institutions. Simply too many of our officers are becoming sick due to contraband being illegally brought into these facilities. We’re prepared to help our members who have been sickened — but we must put this dangerous problem to an end. It’s our hope the steps being taken today will do just that," Jason Bloom, the union's president, said.
Jonathan D. Silver: jsilver@post-gazette.com, 412-263-1962 or on Twitter @jsilverpg.
First Published: August 29, 2018, 6:38 p.m.
