A corrections officer remained hospitalized after she collapsed this week during a training drill involving pepper spray.

Joann Ross-Haney was in fair condition Thursday in Allegheny General Hospital. Relatives said she had been in a coma following the collapse, said Washington County Correctional Facility Warden Joseph Pelzer.

Ms. Ross-Haney, who previously worked for more than a decade as a corrections officer in Cambria County, recently was hired as a part-time guard in Washington. As a new employee, she had been at the end of cadet training, which includes exposure to pepper spray, the warden said.

The training program, run by the county, is approved annually by the state Department of Corrections, he said.

Though Ms. Ross-Haney uses medication for treatment of an unspecified heart condition, her doctor had cleared her for the training.

In interviews with her trainers, Ms. Ross-Haney said she experienced pepper spray exposure in her previous job. It was not expected to cause complications this time.

The warden said investigations by state police and his staff have not determined what caused the problem.

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