Las Vegas police, county fire units respond to disturbance at prison
Las Vegas police and Clark County firefighters were called to a disturbance and fire Wednesday afternoon at the Southern Desert Correctional Center in Indian Springs.
Nevada Department of Corrections spokeswoman Teri Vance said there was a “disturbance” involving nearly 25 inmates in one unit but there was “no major damage and no major injuries.”
A group of inmates “refused to enter their cells or follow orders,” according to a Wednesday afternoon news release. The inmates started two fires, which were extinguished without much damage.
About 15 inmates were taken to higher security prisons, Vance said, while minor injuries were treated onsite.
Police spokesman Larry Hadfield said officers were called to the prison at 12:03 p.m. for “assisting another jurisdiction.”
“The officers were asked to stay outside on a perimeter for some sort of disturbance,” Hadfield said. “None of the officers were to go inside. Everything was contained within.”
Deputy Fire Chief Warren Whitney said the Clark County Fire Department also was called to the prison at around the same time. However, the Fire Department later was notified that the call for service was canceled.
The Southern Desert Correctional Center is located at 20825 Cold Creek Road, near the High Desert State Prison. The facility houses mostly medium security inmates has a capacity of 2,149, according to the Department of Corrections’ website.
Contact Glenn Puit by email at gpuit@reviewjournal.com. Follow @GlennatRJ on Twitter.
