Earlier on Thursday, the 17 inmates on the roof took turns to keep watch in the 24C heat while the others slept.Â
One wore a T-shirt and others paced as guards below traversed the remains from the fires, while at the gate a prison officer s daughter waited. You just don t know whether it s going to turn violent, she told Newshub. You re just hoping that they re going to give in. You just don t know what they re thinking.
One-third of Waikeria Prison is now destroyed following the protest.
The inmates gripe was the conditions they endure inside the oldest unit, built in 1911, which they ve now destroyed. It ll be 2022 before the replacement unit that is under construction is finished.
Your playlist will load after this ad Jeremy Lightfoot said they aren t yet sure what motivated the protests. Source: 1 NEWS
The Department of Corrections says it will not be sending any staff into an unsafe situation and it is prepared to wait to resolve the impasse.
Seventeen inmates remain involved who have access to the top jail ” part of the prison, the oldest part of the site built in 1911 and now rendered useless.
Inmates will never use its 250 beds again because of the damage. However, the unit was due to be replaced in 2022.
Officials said 212 inmates have been evacuated from the site.
There is no truth to that, this is a Corrections lead incident and police are there in support, a spokesman said.
One source told Newshub the prisoners are vowing to continue the standoff until conditions improve and they are heard. The source said they have made a marquee out of towels and that it is not a riot but a protest. The top of the prison is seen still smouldering on Thursday. Photo credit: Karen Rutherford / Newshub.
Prisoners allege they wait months for medical treatment inside the facility and have described using the same towel and dirty clothes for weeks, the source said.
Waikeria uprising: Third of prison s bed capacity destroyed in riots
30 Dec, 2020 12:53 AM
3 minutes to read
Department of Corrections chief executive Jeremy Lightfoot spoke to the media about the ongoing situation at Waikeria Prison.
Video / Michael Craig
Department of Corrections chief executive Jeremy Lightfoot spoke to the media about the ongoing situation at Waikeria Prison.
Video / Michael Craig
NZ Herald
An ongoing riot at Waikeria Prison has destroyed a third of its bed capacity with no end in sight.
Seventeen prisoners remain non-compliant after four gave up overnight. Negotiators are working to defuse the situation which has be ongoing for more than 24 hours.