100-plus Ellsworth inmates riot after refusing to go to cells

Roughly 125 to 150 prisoners rioted Sunday night at the Ellsworth Correctional Facility, the Kansas Department of Corrections said Tuesday.

No one was injured, KDOC spokesperson Rebecca Witte said in a news release. Witte said the disturbance started after inmates refused to return to their cells at around 6:30 p.m.

The riot lasted less than 90 minutes before staff was able to regain control of Building 2, which houses roughly 512 medium-security prisoners in six living units. Witte said a “minimal amount of force was used,” including chemical agents, and no additional staff was called in to resolve the crisis.

Most of the “property damage was largely limited to bulletin boards, security cameras and trash being thrown from cells.” The riot is under investigation and the prisoners in Building 2 are currently on lockdown, Witte said.

Last week, two inmates at Lansing Correctional Facility suffered minor injuries in a riot reportedly caused by 20 to 30 inmates and allegedly over healthcare, The Kansas City Star reported.

Photos from the Lansing riot show entire rooms trashed with debris.

On March 31, prison officials announced three staff members at Lansing had COVID-19. On Tuesday, the KDOC said 21 staff and 18 inmates have been infected at Lansing. None of the other state’s prisons have reported cases.