357 prisoners burn to death in jail inferno

Rob Parsons10 April 2012

Trapped prisoners screamed from their cells as fire swept through a prison in Honduras, killing at least 357 inmates and burning the building to the ground.

Up to 100 perished in their cells as firefighters searched in vain for the guards who held the keys. Other prisoners were rioting, according to fire crews, and tried to escape custody amid the mayhem. It was feared many had succeeded.

The jail in the town of Comayagua, 90 miles north of the Central American nation's capital, Tegucigalpa, housed about 800 inmates - well above its capacity. Fire brigade spokesman Josue Garcia described "horrific" scenes as he fought last night's blaze.

Those who died in their cells burned to death or suffocated, he said. "We couldn't get them out because we didn't have the keys and couldn't find the guards who had them."

Local radio reports said dozens of bodies were burned beyond recognition, in one of the worst prison fires Latin America has ever seen.
Officials are investigating whether the blaze was triggered by inmates setting fire to a mattress, or if an electrical short-circuit was to blame, said national prisons chief Danilo
Orellana.

Hundreds of relatives rushed to the town hospital to discover the fate of their loved ones. About 40 inmates with serious burns were treated there, while another 40 were transported by ambulance to another hospital in Tegucigalpa.

Other family members gathered outside the blazing building, held back by soldiers and police. "I am looking for my brother," said one man. "We don't know what's happened to him and they won't let us in."

Firefighters claimed they had been hindered in getting in to tackle the blaze because gunshots were heard, but Mr Orellana maintained there had been no riot.

Honduras has the highest murder rate in the world, according to the United Nations, and there are frequent riots and clashes between members of rival street gangs in its jails, many of which are filled to double their capacity.