Lincoln – At least six inmates who became ill at the Lincoln Correctional Center were infected with salmonella, authorities said.

They were all recovering from their symptoms, the Nebraska Correctional Services Department said in a news release Dec. 11. Two of them had been taken to a hospital for treatment, but only one was admitted, the department said.

Dr. Harbans Deol, the prison system’s medical director, said all six probably ingested something that caused the sickness. The prison and the neighboring Diagnostic and Evaluation Center share food service operations, but no one at the center reported becoming ill.

“That indicates to us it was not a food item that was served to everyone,” state prisons director Scott Frakes said. “Rather, it seems this was an isolated food item, possibly hidden away by some individuals, which was not properly stored and then was eaten.”

The prison kitchen, serving and dining areas have been disinfected.

– Associated Press