Infant Child of ICE Employee Has Swine Flu

Earlier this month, authorities confirmed an outbreak of the H1N1 virus at the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement detention center, known as the Krome Service Processing Center, in Miami. Now the 19-month-old child of an employee at the center has a confirmed case of the virus, and the American Federation of Government Employees...

By Kyle Munzenrieder

June 23, 2009

[
        {
          "name": "Air - MediumRectangle - Inline Content - Mobile Display Size",
          "component": "19274298",
          "insertPoint": "2",
          "requiredCountToDisplay": "2"
        },{
          "name": "Editor Picks",
          "component": "17482312",
          "insertPoint": "4",
          "requiredCountToDisplay": "1"
        },{
          "name": "Inline Links",
          "component": "18711090",
          "insertPoint": "8th",
          "startingPoint": 8,
          "requiredCountToDisplay": "7",
          "maxInsertions": 25
        },{
          "name": "Air - MediumRectangle - Combo - Inline Content",
          "component": "17482310",
          "insertPoint": "8th",
          "startingPoint": 8,
          "requiredCountToDisplay": "7",
          "maxInsertions": 25
        },{
          "name": "Inline Links",
          "component": "18711090",
          "insertPoint": "8th",
          "startingPoint": 12,
          "requiredCountToDisplay": "11",
          "maxInsertions": 25
        },{
          "name": "Air - Leaderboard Tower - Combo - Inline Content",
          "component": "17482313",
          "insertPoint": "8th",
          "startingPoint": 12,
          "requiredCountToDisplay": "11",
          "maxInsertions": 25
        }
      ]

Earlier this month, authorities confirmed an outbreak of the H1N1 virus at the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement detention center, known as the Krome Service Processing Center, in Miami. Now the 19-month-old child of an employee at the center has a confirmed case of the virus, and the American Federation of Government Employees is worried ICE didn't do enough to protect its employees.

Read a press release from the group: "AFGE's National ICE Council 118 for weeks urged ICE officials to provide its personnel with N-95 masks, in addition to training and information on dealing with the H1N1 virus. ICE on Saturday, June 13, finally did outfit its personnel at the Krome facility with masks, but only after confirming four cases of the virus at the facility. (Two more cases since were confirmed and 20 more are suspected.)"

The group claims detainees are being treated with anti-viral medication, while employees are not.

"We are deeply concerned about this baby and offer full support to our fellow ICE employee," said Matthew Brooks, president of AFGE Local 527, which represents workers at Krome. "This child is an innocent victim in what could be a very serious game that ICE is playing with its employees."

KEEP NEW TIMES FREE... Since we started New Times, it has been defined as the free, independent voice of Miami, and we'd like to keep it that way. Your membership allows us to continue offering readers access to our incisive coverage of local news, food, and culture with no paywalls. You can support us by joining as a member for as little as $1.