Prison
Risks A Catastrophe!
Armory Fire!

Since 1992 the prison has been under orders to correct its many and serious fire-law violations. The prison administrators have neglected their responsibilities and even punished men for complaining.

Recently there was a dangerous fire at the prison. The ARMORY caught on fire! Lumber, paper and other refuse which had been allowed to accumulate at the armory was apparently the source of the blaze. It appears that a heavy-smoking sergeant of the guard may have been smoking and ignited the fire.

In defiance of the law, the armory has no fire sprinkler system and no alarms! It is in the front of the prison adjacent to the parking lot used by visitors and staff and close to the gate which receives prisoners.

Civilians reported hearing ammunition exploding during the fire. Obviously, a fire in an armory could easily cause a devastating explosion. The explosion of masses of tear gas, mace or other noxious weapons would endanger the whole community.

Although all the reports have not been received, there were no reports of exploding ammunition penetrating automobiles or fuel tanks. There were no reports of civilians or staff being wounded. Information about the prisoners who may have been wounded was not made available.

The prison cellblock called "A-Unit" was awash in noxious smoke. It is situated close to the armory and in such a way that, had there been an explosion, prisoners and staff may have been injured or even killed. Neither "A-Unit" nor any other part of the prison was evacuated. Apparently the unit's management saw no reason to protect prisoners or staff from the acrid smoke.

A deadly tragedy was averted thanks to the prompt arrival of the local volunteer fire company and lucky coincidence that the fire occurred at one of the few places accessible to fire-fighting equipment. Most of the living areas in the prison can't be reached by fire trucks, and none of the cellblocks have Occupancy Permits.

In any judgement these facts make out a case of criminal negligence. The failure of prison administrators to (1) locate the armory in a safe place, 2) equip it with appropriate sprinkler, safety and alarm systems, (3) to remove accumulations of combustible refuse from the armory, (4) to ban smoking in and near the armory and (5) to fail to evacuate and/or protect prisoners, visitors and staff from the dangers, amounts to the crime of risking a catastrophe and recklessly endangering another person. The administrators and cellblock managers should be prosecuted.

For more than six and a half years the administrators of the prison knew that the place was unsafe. Still, today, they are fighting to keep the prison unsafe. They don't want to provide the minimum protections which every citizen deserves. They don't even want to allow the prisoners to hang up fire-retardant drapes to reduce the spread of smoke and fire into the cells.

If this incident proves anything, it proves that the prison officials simply don't care about the safety of prisoners, or the staff, or even of the safety of the community. They cannot be trusted to act in the public interest. They cannot be trusted to exercise ordinary regard for safety. These officials should not be trusted to store weapons or ammunition and they should not be trusted to make the prison safe from fire. They should be prosecuted!