Six inmates spent a cold night on the roof of Hawke’s Bay Regional Prison after gaining access to the area on Monday afternoon.
The inmates were seen gathered on the roof of the facility around 8:55 a.m., where they appeared to be playing a news report of their situation from a radio.
The prisoners could be heard shouting “it’s because they didn’t let us out” and “we’re happy”.
A team of a dozen riot squads has assembled at the base of the building.
Marty Sharpe/Things
Prisoners gathered on the roof of the Hawkes Bay Regional Prison on Tuesday morning.
A freezing frost had formed outside the prison gates overnight and shortly after 6.30am the temperature in the area had dropped to -1C. It is not clear if the prisoners had any protection against the cold.
Chief custody officer Neil Beales said a negotiation team had been “engaging with the group of prisoners throughout the night” but had been unable to end the standoff.
“We are taking all appropriate measures to ensure the safety of the inmates and put an end to the incident,” he said.
On Monday, the Department of Corrections’ Lower North Regional Commissioner, Liz Hawthorn, said staff responded immediately when the inmates climbed onto the roof around 2.30pm on Monday.
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Advanced Control and Restraint (ACR) and Prison Negotiation (PNT) teams were brought in on Monday afternoon, he said.
Marty Sharpe/Things
Frost on the ground outside the Hawke’s Bay Regional Prison, where six inmates had spent the previous night on the roof of the facility.
The inmates, aged between 17 and 19, were from the Youth Unit which had been secured since then.
The area the inmates accessed was within the prison’s boundaries and Hawthorn said there was no threat to prison security or public safety.
The weather is cool and clear on Monday evening. Prisoners could be seen walking around the roof screaming and laughing while six or seven Corrections officers waited on the floor.
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One of six prisoners who climbed onto the roof of a wing at Hawke’s Bay Prison.
From the entrance to the prison, screams and intermittent banging could be heard, as if the roof had been hit. Two security guards kept people from getting too close.
Police confirmed on Tuesday morning that they were not attending the incident at this time.
In June, a prison staff member was repeatedly stabbed in the head by an inmate.
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Prison staff watch over prisoners who climbed onto the roof.
New Zealand Correctional Association president Floyd du Plessis called the June attack “savage, violent and unprovoked”.
In 2011, a dozen inmates staged a protest on the roof of the same prison. In this case, the prisoners stayed on the roof overnight.
