A particularly contagious form of a stomach flu-like virus has struck Stateville Correctional Center, and now as many as 140 inmates are sick and bed-ridden.
The illness is has been identified as Norovirus, Illinois Department of Corrections spokeswoman Melaney Arnold told CBS 2 (WBBM-TV). Inmates began getting sick Christmas Day, with many people becoming ill simultaneously.
“The Department of Corrections and the Department of Public Health have already started working on outbreak and control efforts,” Arnold told the television news station.
The illness is best known for sickening people on cruise shops. Because it is so contagious, it can spread quickly. Typically, however, it only takes a day or two to run its course, experts say.
To keep it from spreading at the Crest Hill prison, inmates who have fallen ill are being segregated from the rest of the prison population, the story said.