Six Victorian prisons locked down after guard tests positive to COVID-19

Six Victorian prisons are in lockdown after a prison guard tested positive for coronavirus.

The GEO Australia prison officer tested positive for COVID-19 after working at the state’s biggest jail, the Ravenhall Correctional Centre, which has a capacity of 1300 prisoners.

The facility is in lockdown and has undergone a deep clean.

Prisoners who may have had contact with the guard have been quarantined.

Contact tracing is underway with affected staff to also be notified.

Five other prisons — Hopkins, Langi Kal Kal, Barwon, Fulham and Loddon (pictured above) — are also in lockdown as a precaution.

Community and Public Sector Union spokesperson Julian Kennelly said a “handful” of prisoners and other guards has contact with the infected guard.

“Two of the prisoners have subsequently been moved to Loddon, two were at Barwon, and there’s other interactions with staff,” he told Dee Dee.

Mr Kennelly said prisoner movement was already restricted prior to the guard testing positive, as extra precautions were put in place to stop the spread of coronavirus.

The guard’s positive result comes just days after an inmate at Parkville and a teacher at Malmsbury youth detention centres tested positive.

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