The Boone County Sheriff’s Office has announced that two BCSO employees have tested positive for COVID-19.
On April 14, the Boone County Sheriff’s Office began mandatory COVID-19 testing for all BCSO employees, to be conducted approximately every two weeks. Over 1,700 tests in total have been conducted since that date. These newest positive results bring the total to seven employees with the Sheriff’s Office who have tested positive, five of them within the enforcement division.
Upon receiving the results on October 22, the employees were immediately quarantined at their homes, and will remain isolated for a period of two weeks. the employees will then submit to two more tests before returning to work. Both tests, at least 24 hours apart, must have a negative result before the employees return to work.
BCSO continues to follow suggested guidelines, provided to us by local, state and federal health authorities.
Sheriff Mike Nielsen said, “We are at a place now that is more critical than when this pandemic began. The steps we have taken and continue to take have and will set the course for a positive outcome. Our goal continues to be protecting those employees that are on the front line every day, their families, the inmates and the public that we encounter daily. We continue to mitigate the spread of the virus within our office, even though the nationwide numbers continue to rise. We continue to be diligent in our efforts and guidelines and it shows with the low numbers of positive results we acquire on a bi-weekly basis. I cannot express to my staff, or the public, how important it is to continue to follow our health professionals’ guidelines: Wash your hands, wear your mask, stay home if you’re sick and maintain social distancing. Together we will beat this unseen enemy.”