Fulton Jail Kitchen Still Closed After Carbon Monoxide Detection

ATLANTA, Ga. — A week later, the kitchen at the Fulton County Jail’s Rice Street facility remains out of service after a gas leak shut down the facility and prompted staff to explore other options for feeding inmates.

On Monday, the Fulton County Sheriff’s Office said it was continuing to use a kitchen at an Atlanta public school to prepare meals for inmates because its own kitchen was not operational after a carbon monoxide detection on July 15.

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Staff members are being fed by catering companies, authorities said.

Although authorities said Friday that three of the eight kettles were working, they were not being used because repairs were needed to an extractor hood.

Authorities said a total of four pots must be in working order to be considered fully operational. They are then used to prepare between 8,000 and 11,000 meals a day.

The exhaust fans that power the hood now need to be replaced because they cannot be repaired. The sheriff’s office said it is waiting for them to be replaced.

Gas leak continues to cripple Fulton County jail kitchen: sheriff

“The plan for today is to move two of the working kettles to an area of ​​the kitchen where the ventilation hoods are operating as a temporary solution,” authorities said in a news release Monday.

Gas has been restored to the entire kitchen, except for two appliances that need repair, authorities said. Air conditioning has been restored to the area.

“This escape is another example of the challenges caused by an aging, underfunded prison with infrastructure issues that have led to further health problems for residents and stabbings with weapons fashioned from parts of the building,” authorities said in a previous news release.

Authorities had previously reported that hot water at the South Annex facility in Union City was shut off around 5:45 p.m. Thursday. On Monday, authorities said the hot water tank had since been replaced and hot water had been restored.

The sheriff’s office operates the Rice Street, Alpharetta Annex, South Annex, Marietta Jail and Grady Hospital facilities, according to its jail report.