© WIKI COMMONS/SOUNDERBRUCEAn aerial view of the Monroe Correctional Complex in Washington state
Prisoners began to demonstrate in the recreation yard at Monroe Correctional Complex on April 8, setting off fire extinguishers.
Pepper spray, sting balls and rubber pellets were used to bring the situation under control, the state Department of Corrections confirmed. There were no injuries to the inmates or staff involved.
The incident is believed to have been caused by an outbreak of COVID-19 among six men within the facility's Minimum Security Unit.
The men were transferred to the prison's isolation unit and are being monitored by a health care team.
"The Department of Corrections continues to work at protecting medically vulnerable incarcerated individuals," the DOC said in a statement.
"All individuals in the housing unit where the first positive individuals were previously housed continue to have no symptoms of illness or disease (asymptomatic) and are wearing surgical masks for further protection.
"The Department of Corrections takes the safety and security of its correctional facilities, staff, and incarcerated individuals very seriously. An internal investigation will be completed."
Monroe Correctional Complex opened its Minimum Security Unit in 1997 and it houses approximately 450 minimum custody male inmates.
The U.S. correctional system is facing an "unprecedented" threat from coronavirus, according to prison and civil liberty watchdogs.
The American Civil Liberties Union and The Sentencing Project have called on officials to release elderly and at-risk prisoners — those who do not pose a risk to the general public — nationwide in preparation for the anticipated coronavirus stress on the prison system.
Overcrowded facilities with relatively poor sanitary conditions offer perfect environments for coronavirus to spread. As more people contract the virus, prison staff levels are likely to be stretched further and conditions could deteriorate.
"As the United States continues to combat the global health pandemic rapidly spreading throughout the country, it is critical that we not forget the millions of people working and detained in jails, prisons and detention centers," a coalition of groups wrote in a letter to President Trump in March.
"The public health concerns presented by coronavirus in confined spaces creates an urgent need to ensure the health of staff and those incarcerated, particularly those who are elderly and those with chronic health conditions."
Comment: Are they genuinely scared of 'dying from COVID-19', or are they gaming the system because they've heard that prison riots elsewhere have led to govts emptying prisoners onto the streets?