This story was told by a person incarcerated at Avenal.
UCI: So, what facility are you currently housed at?
Caller: Avenal State Prison.
UCI: So, Avenal State Prison. Okay. So, how is the current COVID situation at Avenal?
Caller: I don’t know. They’ve been having outbreaks. So, it’s kind of like, right now, it’s not a good time. I get tested every Friday.
UCI: Every Friday?
Caller: Yeah, because I got, I was tested negative.
UCI: That’s good.
Caller: So, they test me every Friday.
UCI: Well, it’s good to hear that you don’t have it. So, what have they been doing at your facility to combat COVID-19?
Caller: They kind of have us isolated, separated like within buildings. But one building just had an outbreak. So, I don’t know what’s going to happen next with these guys. But everything’s kind of like, it’s kind of monitored.
We have to wear, yeah, we have to wear a mask inside the building. It’s kind of – they’re doing an okay job. As best as they could anyways for being in this type of environment.
UCI: So, what about at your building? Has there been any, has there been any large amounts of people infected with it?
Caller: Oh, this whole building. This building that I’m in has a population of 190.
Out of the 190, 145 tested positive. Forty-five of us tested negative. And they left us in here.
UCI: So, they moved everyone else out?
Caller: I didn’t get quarantined. None of us got quarantined. Nothing happened. They just said if we get signs or symptoms to let them know. But that’s the way it was. And I’ve been testing negative ever since.
The last time I – I mean, I got tested in June when everybody tested positive and I’ve been negative ever since. So, I have never tested positive.
UCI: That’s good. So …
Caller: But I believe I caught it back, I caught it back in February before all this started. I think I was like one of the first ones because I had all the symptoms.
UCI: How did it feel to have COVID-19?
Caller: Oh, it was kind of scary. I felt, I knew something was wrong because I had the shivers.
Fever. I had everything but the loss of taste and smell. I had all the other symptoms. There was shortness of breath. Fevers. Chills.
UCI: So, back in February when you first got it, did the staff members do anything to prevent other people from getting it?
Caller: No, because they didn’t, at the time it wasn’t really known for it to be in the system, so they – I went to medical and I told them I had the chills and fever, but I was not COVID tested.
They just thought it was maybe the flu or something. And then I just, I got better. So, that was kind of like the end of story until they got test – they didn’t have the tests here yet in the prison system. So, when they finally did, this whole yard ended up being infected, tested positive.
UCI: About when did Avenal start getting COVID tests?
Caller: They got the tests in like June.
UCI: June?
Caller: May, early June?
UCI: So, have staff been following procedures to make sure that they don’t bring the infection in?
Caller: Yeah. They try to, but it’s kind of hard to contain it when everybody’s, when we’re all showering together, living together.
Bunked up together. It’s kind of hard to not catch it or to kind of self-quarantine when you’re showering, and eating, and then interacting with people that are positive, you know.
UCI: So, do you know …?
Caller: There was probably nothing they can do besides probably eliminate the population.
They tried to, but they just moved people around and it didn’t do no good.
UCI: So, do you know how COVID got into Avenal?
Caller: Well, it had to have been the staff or free staff. I mean there’s no other way, there was no visits or nothing. There was no other way for anybody, any inmate to contract it. There’s no other, there was no leaving the grounds and coming back.
So, the only way for them to get it is probably from a staff member, free staff, or correctional staff. From what I understood, one of the COs had tested positive. And they were the first ones. And then when the tests came in, one of the buildings tested. And before you knew it, this whole yard got tested and everybody was positive.
UCI: Do you have any ideas of what the prison should do to make the situation better?
Caller: Oh man, I don’t know. The only thing they can try to do is – I don’t even know. Practice safe actually for while they’re out there because they’re the only ones that can spread it and get it, because we’re stuck. There’s nothing for us to do but … I mean we can only do so much, wash our hands so many times, wear the mask. But, you know, we’re stuck.
UCI: So, how have you been coping with everything that’s been happening. Like are you mentally fine?
Caller: Oh yeah, I’m fine. I’ve been trying to – well see because I get tested every Friday, everybody that tested positive, they don’t get tested no more.
UCI: Oh, they don’t?
Caller: And then they get signs or symptoms. So, because I’m negative, I get tested every Friday. So, now I’m hoping – I was asking to try to get antibody tested to verify that I already had it.
Because I don’t want to get tested no more. I’m tired of getting tested every Friday. It’s getting a little old, so. But I’m fine. I live with it. I don’t, I walk around with no mask. I mean I play soccer. I play sports. I mean nothing’s changed. I’m doing the same thing I did like before the COVID.
UCI: What about being not able to see your family and loved ones?
Caller: Yeah, no. That’s not, that’s restricted to phone calls only. I don’t want my family to come here anyways even if the restrictions were lifted and I told my family that I wouldn’t want to see them because there’s people coming from different cities from all over. And the probability of her catching COVID from somebody just to come see me would be really high. So, for me it’s not worth the risk.
UCI: So, about the people who are in your building that have been infected, do they just move them to a different building?
Caller No.
UCI: So, they just leave them in the same building?
Caller: Yeah everybody, we all stayed here. I stayed – my bunkee tested positive. So, I stayed bunked up with them. Nobody moved. If anything, they should’ve moved us that tested negative, but they didn’t.
UCI: Is there a building in Avenal specifically for uninfected?
Caller: Is there a what?
UCI: Is there a building just for people who are not infected?
Caller: Not that I know of. I mean they have a designated area now. Like if you test positive or something, you get quarantined for two weeks. But at the time if you had tested positive, yeah, they would move you out for two weeks. Now they do.
It’s kind of hard to move you if all the yards are, the majority …
Caller: It’s hard to move you to a yard when everybody’s infected. So, what’s the whole point of moving because you’re just going to move and be around another infected group of people. That’s how bad it was there. So, [00:10:52 unintelligible], the two, the little two weeks are over, so then it’s like …
UCI: Is there anything that you want people to know about?
Caller: I think if anything, everybody should get tested. Everybody should continue to get retested. Because everybody’s saying you can catch it twice. And so far, I believe I had it back in February. I didn’t get tested back then. But now it’s already nine months later and I haven’t caught it again.
And there’re people that are testing positive and I haven’t caught it. So, I really don’t believe that you can actually catch it twice. I don’t believe in that. I haven’t seen it yet. Until I test positive, then I’ll believe it. But until then, I don’t believe that to be true.
UCI: That’s fine. So, was there any – how many people do you think were infected back when in February when you think that you had the virus?
Caller: I don’t know. It was hard to say. It was hard to say. They didn’t do mass testing until June.
UCI: Oh.
Caller: So, if we was infected before then, there was no telling.
UCI: Well, thank you so much for calling PrisonPandemic.
Caller: Okay.
UCI: Yeah, that’d be great. It’d also be great if you could tell other people to call in so we could get more information about how they’re experiencing COVID too.
Caller: All right. I sure will.
UCI: Okay, thank you.
Caller: All right, you have a good evening.
UCI: You too. Bye.
Caller: Okay, bye.