Bulloch County Jail inmates were disgusted Monday after spotting what some said were live maggots in the potatoes served for dinner.
    After the father of a current inmate contacted the Statesboro Herald Tuesday, both Bulloch County Sheriff Lynn Anderson and Bulloch County Correctional Institute Warden Billy Tompkins confirmed that “some kind of bug” was found in the potatoes. Tompkins said the remaining portions of the inmate’s meals were destroyed, as were any possibly contaminated foods that were not yet served. Uncooked potatoes in a storage area were also destroyed, he said.
    “It never should have happened,” Anderson said. “But (Tompkins) took care of the problem.” He had high praise for the service provided by the correctional institute.
    The Bulloch County Correctional Institute provides meals for both its inmates and those at the Bulloch County Jail, Tompkins said. “We prepare 50,000 meals a week.”
    And the BCCI kitchen always receives stellar marks from local health inspectors, he said. “Since I’ve been here, four years in June, we have never had below a 95.”
    The BCCI, known locally as “the work camp,” houses state prisoners and includes an eight-acre garden which produces crops year round, for use in feeding inmates, he said. This year inmates “put up” (canned or preserved by freezing) 19,000 pounds of potatoes, 5,000 pounds of onions, 3,000 gallons of peas, tomatoes and other vegetables, as well as 19,000 ears of corn, he said.
    And in addition to serving 50,000 meals a month for jail and correctional institute inmates, the BCCI kitchen also provides food for county employee functions and occasionally for the Bulloch County Board of Education, he said.
    Tompkins was appalled about the contaminated food and apologized, adding he can’t explain how the mistake was made.
    Cooking a meal for 600 people is a major endeavor, and while inmates do some of the cooking, they are supervised by kitchen employees as well as himself, he said. “There’s not a day goes by I don’t go through that kitchen, and it got by me, too.”
    The potatoes “weren’t loaded up with bugs and vermin,” but even one insect or any non-food item is unacceptable, he said.
    When questioned as to whether the incident could be intentional, he said he did not think so. “I don’t suspect it for a second,” he said.
    Although some inmates had eaten some or all of their meals, replacement meals were provided, he said.