51 killed, 24 wounded in lethal Colombia jail fireplace, authorities say

Not less than 51 inmates have died and 24 others are injured because of a fireplace that broke out inside a jail in Tuluá, Colombia, early Tuesday morning, in line with authorities officers.

Tito Castellanos, the director of Colombia’s nationwide jail system, shared an up to date loss of life toll and new particulars concerning the lethal incident throughout a press conference on Tuesday. He initially confirmed 49 fatalities linked to the jail fireplace, however clarified that two extra inmates died after being transported to a close-by medical heart, Reuters reported. 

Castellanos mentioned the blaze erupted after an argument between inmates led one to set fireplace to a mattress, igniting the fireplace in a jail cell block that housed about 180 folks. About 1,200 are incarcerated on the Tuluá jail.

Tuluá firefighters have been referred to as to the scene as a result of the jail guard on responsibility was unable to regulate the flames, he added. 

The inmates wounded in Tuesday’s fireplace have been transferred to close by hospitals. Six are at present being handled in intensive care models, whereas two extra are receiving therapy at a well being heart in Cali, a a lot bigger metropolis situated about 60 miles away. Wilson Ruiz, the minister of justice in Colombia, confirmed that two guards additionally sustained minor accidents, the Related Press reported.

Castellanos beforehand characterised the occasions main as much as the jail fireplace in Tuluá as an obvious “riot” and mentioned the nationwide prisons company didn’t have extra details about circumstances for many who have been transported to Cali in feedback to Caracol Radio, in line with Reuters. 

“It’s a tragic and disastrous occasion … There was a state of affairs, apparently a riot, the prisoners lit some mattresses and a conflagration occurred,” Castellanos reportedly informed the information outlet, including that many of the inmates killed “died due to smoke inhalation.”