SC inmates sew medical masks as coronavirus causes shortage
South Carolina state prison inmates have begun sewing thousands of medical masks and mask covers to help medical professionals across the state deal with an ongoing supply shortage, according to a tweet from the S.C. Department of Corrections.
Inmates at the state’s two women’s prisons, Leath Correctional institution in Greenwood and Camille Graham Correctional Institution in Columbia, are making more than 1,000 masks every day for health care workers at the state’s corrections and juvenile justice departments, as well as Medical University of South Carolina and other health care facilities, according to the tweet.
Specifically, the women are sewing surgical type masks and covers for the N-95 mask, the type of mask recommended to health care workers by the CDC. The covers will allow the masks to be used longer.
“The ladies here are excited to be able to contribute nationally to this response of creating these masks so they can serve our population, whether they be medical, law enforcement, the community, family and friends,” Camille Graham Correctional warden Lisa Engram said in a video posted by the agency.
Across the country, health care workers have experienced a shortage of medical supplies, especially masks. South Carolina is no different.
Other agencies across the state have also employed unconventional means to address the mask shortage. The Medical University of South Carolina began 3-D printing medical masks last week.
