Canberra's jail is again in lockdown after a staff member tested positive for COVID-19 on Thursday.
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ACT Corrections has confirmed that the female staff member - who was fully vaccinated - has had access to a number of areas within the facility from earlier this week, in particular Monday and Tuesday.
It is believed that the staff member - described as "reasonably senior" in rank and not a corrections officer - was infected out in the community and unknowingly brought it to the jail.
ACT Corrections boss and former Chief Police Officer Ray Johnson said that investigations were now being undertaken as to what those contact areas were and the particular times when the infected person was in those areas.
Mr Johnson said efforts were now being taken to "minimise the movement of staff and detainees within the facility to the best of our ability while still giving them opportunities for exercise and light, food and all the things they [inmates] should reasonably expect" .
Incoming detainees to the prison are kept separate from the rest of the population for up to five days. They are COVID tested on days one and five.
A reliable source, who has been in direct contact with a detainee in the past 48 hours, has advised The Canberra Times that prisoners were "stressed" about this latest infection and the lockdown.
"Those of us who have friends and relatives in the prison are very concerned about this ongoing culture of secrecy that continues to pervade right through the system," she said.
"We never receive any straight answers from Corrections and neither do the detainees. Why can't they tell us the truth?
"What we know is that there are many detainees in the Canberra prison who are suffering from poor nutrition, don't get enough access to fresh air, sunshine and exercise, and have poor mental health.
"The prison is not human rights compliant and never has been."
All outside visits and contact with detainees have been cancelled until further notice.
Maddy Northam, ACT regional secretary of the community and public sector union (CPSU), said that among its members working at the jail, 75 per cent had been double-vaccinated.
Data provided to the union showed that 77 per cent of AMC inmates had received one dose, and 63 per cent were double dosed.
She said the CPSU will work with the ACT government "as we re-open, and consult with them on mandatory vaccination [for members] if there is a public heath order issued".
"Where there are clear public health requirements, the CPSU supports mandatory vaccination," she said.
Previously, a detainee tested positive for COVID-19 on September 11.
That person was found to be positive when tested on arrival at the prison after being arrested on the street and held in custody at the ACT watch house before his court appearance.
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That incident sparked a shut down and thorough deep clean of the ACT police watch house and exposed several police and Corrections officers.
Discussions continue internally as to whether all people detained at the police watch house in Civic should be tested before being transported.
All ACT Policing officers are required to wear personal protective equipment when interacting with the community.
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