U.S. Prison on Lockdown After Inmates ‘Take Over’

Around 100 inmates at a US prison have taken over an entire unit of cells today, with fears of a riot growing.

Multiple police, firefighters and other emergency teams rushed to the Stillwater Prison in Bayport, Minnesota. According to the Minnesota Department of Corrections, the all-male facility was put under an emergency lockdown on Sunday morning.

The prison was put into lockdown after around 100 inmates in one unit refused to return to their cells. There have been no injuries reported.

Tactical teams are reportedly preparing to enter the prison to rescue any correctional officers inside with reports they are planning to deploy chemical irritants. EMS command is also requesting multiple ambulances and the major incident response bus to attend the prison.

It’s been reported that EMS command is requesting as many as 10 additional ambulances to the prison on top of the eight ambulances currently said to be on site.

All staff were removed from the unit’s common areas, though two correctional officers are reportedly safe in the unit’s secure control area known as “the bubble”. They are said to be in communication with the prison’s command personnel.

Department of Corrections (DOC) spokesperson Andy Skoogman says members of the Crisis Negotiation Team have been activated. DOC’s Special Operations Response Team has also been activated “out of an abundance of caution”.

Michelle Gross, a spokesperson for Communities United Against Police Brutality (CUAPB) said the incident was reportedly prompted by inmates’ lack of access to clean water, ice and showers for several days due to understaffing. She said the organisation has heard from several inmates who say the takeover is peaceful.

“They’re saying it’s hotter than hell in there and the water in the cells is brown,” said Ms Gross. “The inmates have been melting ice for drinking water, but with short staffing, there’s not enough to go around.”

The prison is said to be one of nine in Minnesota without facility-wide air conditioning, which led to “miserable” conditions as temperatures soared back in July. Staff and residents were given reminders to stay hydrated and limit activity, while some units were given jugs of ice water.

Nurses were also on high alert, making rounds to ensure those at the facility were in good health, keeping a particularly close eye on those with preexisting conditions.

In his short story ‘There Will Be Seeds For Next Year’ Zeke Caligiuri said there is little more to do than wait when the heat settles into the 109-year-old stone building. The short story, included in the book Prison Noir, was inspired by Mr Caligiuri’s time at the Stillwater prison.

He said tensions would often rise with the temperatures. Speaking to All Things Considered, he said: “The same way in cities when it gets particularly hot [and] it seems there’s more violence, I think here, in the greater sense, it comes down to the way you treat human beings.

“If human beings on a regular basis don’t feel like their human needs are taken care of and then something else comes in and agitates that, you will get tension.”

Stillwater was built in 1914 and is Minnesota’s largest close-security institution for adult males. It has seven living units inside and a minimum-security unit outside the main perimeter.