CRANSTON, Rhode Island (WPRI) — Some Rhode Island correctional officers are questioning the fluctuating temperatures at the state’s prison facilities.
Richard Ferruccio, president of the RI Brotherhood of Correctional Officers (RICBO), told 12 News, “It’s not uncommon” for facilities to experience swings in extremely hot or cold temperatures.
He said that over the weekend of March 11, the union office received a series of calls from correctional officers complaining about the cold at the Adult Correctional Institution’s Intake Service Center (ISC). According to the RI Department of Corrections (RIDOC), the center has a total capacity of 1,148 inmate beds.
“Correction officers wore jackets, hats and sometimes even gloves at the facility,” Ferruccio said.
Inmates housed at the ISC fall into several categories, including pre-trial detainees, newly sentenced inmates awaiting transfer to other facilities, and sentenced protective detainees, according to RIDOC. The department said a detainee awaiting trial typically stays there for about 25 days.
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Ferruccio said in addition to correctional officials’ complaints about the common cold, an inmate housed at the ISC was taken to the hospital on March 13 because he was “possibly suffering from hypothermia and some other complications.”
JR Ventura, a spokesman for RIDOC, told 12 News the department could not confirm whether the events were related or clarify what the inmate’s diagnosis was.
“As a precautionary measure, one inmate was transported to the hospital by the Intake Service Center for evaluation after exhibiting unusual behavior,” Ventura said in a statement Friday.
Ventura said the inmate’s condition was stable as of Tuesday and “he remains at Rhode Island Hospital due to multiple underlying medical conditions.”
RIDOC cannot address the specific health condition of patients, he added.
According to Ventura, the ISC experienced “some temperature fluctuations” this week. He said the facility got warm as the weather changed and maintenance work had to be done to cool down parts of the building.
Ventura told 12 News that the ISC has two main areas, a north side and a south side, with multiple habitation modules in each wing. He said when temperatures change, it rarely happens throughout the facility, but mainly in one wing and certain modules.
“The temperature fluctuated from warm to cool as the controls for the different habitation modules were adjusted and calibrated. it was not outside the required safety levels,” explained Ventura.
In this case, he said the south side cooled faster than the north side. During the week in question, Ventura noted that “temperatures oscillated from the mid-50s to 80s at times, but did not remain at that level.”
“For reasons of protocol and as an extra precaution, officers distributed extra blankets to inmates to make them more comfortable. The fluctuating temperature has been fixed,” he added.
In the event of higher temperatures, Ventura said the maintenance department will direct staff to lower the water temperatures, which in turn will reduce the heat. He said individual units would have to be manually cycled on and off as needed to regulate the temperature.
According to Ventura, the department has been in the process of getting a new HVAC system for this facility for four years, “because the current system is obsolete and requires constant repairs and maintenance.” He said fluctuating temperatures are an ongoing problem.
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“Temperatures fluctuate daily depending on the outside temperature and we have qualified personnel on site monitoring the HVAC system,” explained Ventura.
Ventura said the department had been bidding for a total HVAC renovation contract since July 2020. He said RIDOC is currently in the process of considering questions from potential bidders, which ends on Tuesday.
Ferruccio said it’s a frustrating situation for the hundreds of inmates and the hundreds of correctional officers who work at the facility. He said the union is “consistently” voicing its concerns with the prison administration.
“It increases tensions between staff and inmates. It’s just an unhealthy situation that we’ve struggled with for years,” Ferruccio said.
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