Woman dies from coronavirus at women’s federal prison in Fort Worth as cases swell
A woman died from COVID-19 on Wednesday at the women’s federal prison in Fort Worth, according to the Bureau of Prisons.
Sandra Kincaid, 69, is the second woman to die at FMC Carswell prison from coronavirus. She tested positive for the virus on July 6 and was hospitalized on July 12 with shortness or breath, fatigue and weakness, the BOP said in a press release.
On July 14, she was put on a ventilator, and she died the next day.
Like most of the women at Carswell — which is the only federal medical prison for women in the country — Kincaid had medical conditions. The BOP did not specify what conditions she had, but described them as “long-term” and “pre-existing.”
As of Sunday, 200 women had tested positive for coronavirus at Carswell. In three weeks, the cases have exploded from three to 200. Out of the 1,357 inmates, 918 have been tested; 302 women are waiting for their test results, according to BOP data.
Kincaid was serving a 470-month sentence out of Tennessee for conspiracy to sell drugs and conspiracy to commit money laundering. She had been in custody at Carswell since July 2018.
The first woman to die from coronavirus in the U.S. while in federal custody was Andrea Circle Bear, who died at FMC Carswell on April 28. Circle Bear gave birth to a baby girl while on a ventilator and died four weeks later at a Fort Worth hospital.
Many of the women at Carswell are afraid the virus will spread through the close quarters of the prison like a wildfire, inmates told the Star-Telegram.
This story was originally published July 19, 2020 at 3:41 PM.
