A Connecticut Lottery Corp. employee who had been self-isolating at home has tested positive for COVID-19, prompting lottery officials to announce they are temporarily moving operations from the lottery's Rocky Hill headquarters to a "backup facility" they declined to identify.

The move is effective Thursday.

"Out of an abundance of caution," the Rocky Hill location "will be closed for deep cleaning following today's notice of an employee testing positive for COVID-19," the lottery announced Wednesday in a late-afternoon news release. "The positive test results today came after the employee had been self-isolating at home and absent from the facility for more than two weeks."

Tara Chozet, a lottery spokeswoman, said the lottery was not publicly announcing the location of its backup facility.

Before moving to Rocky Hill, lottery headquarters were located in Newington, the scene of a March 6, 1998, mass shooting in which a disgruntled lottery employee gunned down four supervisors before turning the gun on himself.

Lottery prizes of $50,000 and above must be claimed in person at the backup site by appointment only, the lottery said. Appointments can be made by calling (860) 713-2679.

Prizes up to $599 may be claimed at lottery retailers or by mail. Prizes up to $5,000 may be claimed at high-tier claim centers or by mail, while prizes ranging from $5,000 to $49,999 must be claimed by mail. For instructions, visit CTLottery.org/ClaimPrize.

b.hallenbeck@theday.com