A fight at the state prison in Gunnison sent five prisoners to a hospital on Monday and prompted lockdowns at both that facility and the state prison in Salt Lake City.
According to a news release from the Utah Department of Corrections, 15 prisoners were “involved in an altercation” that “may have been gang-related” at the Central Utah Correctional Facility on Monday evening.
Authorities did not say how serious the injuries suffered by the five prisoners were, but did say that “weapons were involved.”
The Department of Corrections did not specify what those weapons were, and they did not release the names of the prisoners involved in the fight.
A temporary lockdown was initiated at both the Gunnison prison, about 125 miles south of Salt Lake City, and the Utah State Correctional Facility in Salt Lake City. Prisoners were restricted to their cells and dormitories, and their movement was “limited … until a further review is completed.”
As of Tuesday afternoon, it was unclear when the lockdown may be lifted.
According to the Department of Corrections, there are about 1,750 male prisoners housed at the Gunnison facility, and about 2,200 male and 400 female prisoners housed in Salt Lake City.
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