A state health inspector found serious food safety problems at Pulaski State Prison kitchen during a routine check on January 29. The kitchen scored 67 points, a failing grade.
What’s Important: The inspector found employees were not washing their hands between tasks like using the bathroom, mopping, and preparing food. The only handwashing sink in the kitchen was broken. The person running the kitchen did not know the sink was broken and did not set up another place for workers to wash hands until the inspector told them to.
What the inspector found:
• The handwashing sink plumbing was ripped from the wall and the pipe was smashed with a foot or blunt object
• Cheese was sitting out at room temperature in the kitchen office
• Milk and bologna in the walk-in cooler measured 42 degrees
• Nacho meat was at 65 degrees and sauce was at 123 degrees
• Water was streaming from the fire sprinkler system near the dishwashing area
• Sewage was backing up through drains in the middle of the kitchen
• Trash was stored outside on trailers in bags exposed to weather
What was fixed during the inspection: Workers stopped switching tasks without washing hands. One sink on the line was converted to a temporary handwashing station. The cheese was thrown out. The milk and bologna were moved to a working cooler. The nacho meat was thrown out and replaced. The sauce was sent back to the oven.
What was not fixed: The broken handwashing sink, the leaking sprinkler system, the sewage backup, and the outdoor trash storage were not fixed during the inspection.
What happens next: The prison had 72 hours to fix the plumbing problems. The prison has two weeks to fix the outdoor trash storage. Four of the eight violations were repeat problems from earlier inspections.
