Tuesday, April 19, 2011

DOC assisting with storm clean-up, security and supply delivery


From probation officers helping law enforcement at road blocks to inmate crews clearing debris, the Department of Correction is responding to a variety of needs as part of recovery efforts in areas devastated by tornados.

Probation officers are helping with traffic control at road blocks; providing security in areas heavily damaged by the storms; and delivering supplies to victims. Currently, the officers are providing assistance in Lee and Bertie counties.
Inmate work crews from various minimum security facilities are assisting with debris removal in Bertie, Robeson and Greene counties. So far inmate crews from Pasquotank Minimum Custody Unit and Tyrrell Prison Work Farm have been deployed to clear debris in Colerain. Robeson Correctional Center inmates removed debris at a school in Rowland and crews from Duplin Correctional Center are removing debris in areas around Snow Hill.

Inmates assigned to the work crews are in minimum custody and are screened prior to being placed on jobs outside the prison facility. The inmate crews are supervised by correctional staff. Any work completed at schools is done when they are closed.

In addition, the department has provided one of its trucks and a driver to deliver supplies to Emergency Operation Centers in Johnston and Bladen counties. The driver will be delivering pallets of water and roofing tarps.