A Bulloch County Correctional Institute inmate died Tuesday after passing out during exercise inside the facility.

BCCI Warden Chris Hill said Brandon Howard, 23, Warner Robins, was doing push-ups in his dorm around 11:15 a.m. when he apparently passed out. Prison staff performed cardio-pulmonary resuscitation and applied electronic devices in attempts to revive him, but Howard was pronounced dead after being transported to East Georgia Regional Medical Center, he said.

Prison video showed Howard exercising in the dorm, “dancing around” in between sets, Hill said. He had not been outside that morning, and had only been at the work camp since May 10 after transfer from the Georgia Department of Corrections Diagnostic Prison, he said.

Bulloch County Deputy Coroner Richard Pylant said Howard showed no outward signs of ill health, adding that Howard’s body will be taken to the Georgia Bureau of Investigation Crime Lab in Savannah Wednesday morning. The GBI is assisting in the investigation, which is customary when an inmate dies in custody, he said.

Hill said while prison staff attempted to revive Howard, someone called 911 and EMS arrived to transport him to the hospital. Pylant said EMTs continued resuscitation attempts on the way to the hospital, but Howard was pronounced dead on arrival.

Hill said Howard had “no medical history that we know” besides the inmate having told a prison nurse he had a seizure when he was a child. Howard tested negative for any intoxicants in his system when he arrived at BCCI in May, he said.

Information on reasons Howard was incarcerated were not immediately available, as his information was not found on the Georgia Department of Corrections website.

Herald reporter Holli Deal Saxon may be reached at (912) 489-9414.