Connecticut Department of Corrections Commissioner Angel Quiros reports that Correction Officer Quentin Foster died recently from complications associated with the COVID-19 virus. Foster was the state’s first correctional staff member to die from the virus, according to Quiros.

“There is no other way to say it, I was devastated when I was informed of Officer Foster’s death,” wrote Quiros in a memorandum to corrections staff. “This is the realization of one of my worst fears, which we worked diligently to try to prevent.”

Foster, 45, was a nine-year veteran with the department assigned to the Willard-Cybulski Correctional Institution in Enfield. He had five children.

“Officer Foster’s death is a painful reminder that we must keep our collective guards up and keep fighting to contain this persistent virus,” Quiros wrote. “I firmly believe the best way to keep COVID-19 at bay is to get vaccinated. As we wait on the finalization of the policy related to the vaccination mandate for DOC employees, I encourage those of you who have not yet been vaccinated to do so as soon as possible. Ever-increasing evidence illustrates the vaccine helps save lives. There is a world of difference between a head cold and being placed on a ventilator.”

Foster’s death is the second one within that week related to the state’s corrections facilities. An incarcerated individual under the supervision of the Connecticut Department of Correction at the MacDougall-Walker facility in Suffield died from complications related to the novel coronavirus. Due to medical privacy laws, the name of the individual is not being released.

The 78-year-old male was being treated in the facility’s infirmary and succumbed to his illnesses early on September 8. The deceased had suffered from several significant underlying health issues.

The individual had previously contracted, and recovered from, the COVID-19 virus in December of 2020.

On August 9, he was transferred to a local area hospital where he tested positive for COVID-19. After receiving treatment, the individual returned to the MacDougall-Walker facility on August 16.

He last entered the Connecticut correctional system in May of 2000, and was serving a 40-year sentence for risk of injury to a minor and first-degree sexual assault.

He is the first incarcerated individual under the care of the Connecticut Department of Correction to die due to COVID-19 related health issues since January of this year.