Lee county correction institution on lockdown

By: AP | SCNow
Published: May 22, 2008

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Parts of a maximum-security prison in South Carolina remain on lockdown. Guards were forced to abandon a wing at the all-male Lee Correctional Center for more than two hours Wednesday after inmates became unruly.
Prisons spokesman Josh Gelinas said Thursday the inmates in several dormitories would be fed all meals in their cells while officials continue to investigate the disturbance.
Two officers guarding a dormitory housing 150 inmates said they fired tear gas into the unit and fled at around 5:30 p.m. Wednesday when they realized they weren't able to compel the inmates to return to their cells.
By 8 p.m., officials rounded up enough guards to re-enter the dorm and secure the area. Gelinas says three inmates suffered minor injuries. No guards
were hurt.