Outbreak at Iowa pork plant was larger than state reported

FILE - This April 16, 2020 file photo shows the Tyson Foods pork processing plant in Columbus Junction, Iowa. One of the first coronavirus outbreaks at the Iowa meatpacking plant was more severe than previously known, with over twice as many workers becoming infected than the Iowa Department of Public Health publicly confirmed. The department announced at a May 5 news conference that 221 employees at the plant in Columbus Junction had tested positive for COVID-19. But records show that, days earlier, Tyson officials told workplace safety regulators that 522 plant employees had tested positive to their knowledge. (Jim Slosiarek/The Gazette via AP, File)

IOWA CITY, Iowa (AP) — The first confirmed coronavirus outbreak at an Iowa meatpacking plant was far more severe than previously known, with more than twice as many workers becoming infected than the state Department of Public Health told the public, newly released records show.

The department announced at a May 5 news conference that 221 employees at the Tyson Foods pork processing plant in Columbus Junction had tested positive for COVID-19.

But days earlier, Tyson officials told Iowa workplace safety regulators during an inspection that 522 plant employees had been infected to their knowledge, documents obtained through the open records law show

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