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Hundreds killed in prison blaze horror
Source: Agencies |
February 16, 2012, Thursday
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Trapped inmates screamed from their cells as a fire swept through a Honduran prison, killing at least 300 inmates in one of the world's deadliest fires in decades, authorities said yesterday.
Some 475 people escaped from the prison in the town of Comayagua but 356 are missing and presumed dead, said Hector Ivan Mejia, a spokesman for the Honduras Security Ministry. He said 21 people had been injured in the blaze that began on Tuesday night.
Dozens were trapped behind bars as prison authorities tried to find the keys, officials said.
Honduras' overcrowded and dilapidated prisons have been hit by a string of deadly riots and fires in recent years. A 2004 prison fire killed more than 100 incarcerated gang members in a state prison north of the capital. A fire a year earlier at a nearby facility killed 70 gang members.
Honduran authorities have repeatedly pledged to improve conditions but human rights groups say little has been done.
The country of 7.6 million people is a major transit route for drugs headed from South America to the United States and has one of the world's highest rates of violent crime.
The US State Department has criticized Honduras for "harsh prison conditions" and violence against detainees.
Outraged relatives of dead inmates tried to storm the gates of the prison yesterday morning to recover the remains of their loves ones. Witnesses said they were driven back by police officers firing tear gas.
Dozens of inmates' relatives hurled rocks at officers.
"We want to see the body," said Juan Martinez, whose son was reported dead. "We'll be here until we get to do that."
Comayagua fire department spokesman Josue Garcia said he saw "horrific" scenes while trying to put out the fire, saying inmates rioted in attempts to escape. He said "some 100 prisoners were burned to death or suffocated in their cells."
Garcia added: "We couldn't get them out because we didn't have the keys and couldn't find the guards who had them."
Rescuers carried shirtless, semi-conscious prisoners from the facility by their arms and legs. One carried a victim away from the fire on his back.
Officials are investigating whether the fire was triggered by rioting prisoners or by an electrical fault, said Danilo Orellana, head of the national prison system.
A prisoner identified as Silverio Aguilar told HRN Radio that someone started screaming, "Fire! fire!" and the prisoners called for help.
"For a while, nobody listened. But after a few minutes, which seemed like an eternity, a guard appeared with keys and let us out," he said.
He said there had been 60 prisoners packed into his cell.
Some 475 people escaped from the prison in the town of Comayagua but 356 are missing and presumed dead, said Hector Ivan Mejia, a spokesman for the Honduras Security Ministry. He said 21 people had been injured in the blaze that began on Tuesday night.
Dozens were trapped behind bars as prison authorities tried to find the keys, officials said.
Honduras' overcrowded and dilapidated prisons have been hit by a string of deadly riots and fires in recent years. A 2004 prison fire killed more than 100 incarcerated gang members in a state prison north of the capital. A fire a year earlier at a nearby facility killed 70 gang members.
Honduran authorities have repeatedly pledged to improve conditions but human rights groups say little has been done.
The country of 7.6 million people is a major transit route for drugs headed from South America to the United States and has one of the world's highest rates of violent crime.
The US State Department has criticized Honduras for "harsh prison conditions" and violence against detainees.
Outraged relatives of dead inmates tried to storm the gates of the prison yesterday morning to recover the remains of their loves ones. Witnesses said they were driven back by police officers firing tear gas.
Dozens of inmates' relatives hurled rocks at officers.
"We want to see the body," said Juan Martinez, whose son was reported dead. "We'll be here until we get to do that."
Comayagua fire department spokesman Josue Garcia said he saw "horrific" scenes while trying to put out the fire, saying inmates rioted in attempts to escape. He said "some 100 prisoners were burned to death or suffocated in their cells."
Garcia added: "We couldn't get them out because we didn't have the keys and couldn't find the guards who had them."
Rescuers carried shirtless, semi-conscious prisoners from the facility by their arms and legs. One carried a victim away from the fire on his back.
Officials are investigating whether the fire was triggered by rioting prisoners or by an electrical fault, said Danilo Orellana, head of the national prison system.
A prisoner identified as Silverio Aguilar told HRN Radio that someone started screaming, "Fire! fire!" and the prisoners called for help.
"For a while, nobody listened. But after a few minutes, which seemed like an eternity, a guard appeared with keys and let us out," he said.
He said there had been 60 prisoners packed into his cell.
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