Power outage at Marion County Jail 2; 28 inmates injured

INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) – There was a power outage at Marion County Jail 2 Monday morning, according to the Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department.

Police said the power outage occurred around 3:38 a.m.

According to Indianapolis Power & Light, a crew responded following an emergency call from the Marion County Jail 2 around 3:45 a.m. Once on the scene, crews worked to isolate a power line above the correctional facility.

The Marion County Sheriff’s Office said fights broke out following the power failure.

Eight inmates were injured and transported to Sidney & Lois Eskenazi Hospital, suffering broken bones and soft tissue injuries. Three other injured inmates were treated by jail staff.

The MCSO said inmates were hurt during fights while some fell during the outage.

Sheriff Kerry Forestal said 11 inmates were sent to a hospital and 17 more were treated by medical staff at the jail. Forestal says none of the inmates are in critical condition.

At the time of the outage, there were more than 1,100 inmates in the jail. Deputies said no inmates escaped.

IPL said ice on a conduit pulled wires from a pole which resulted in the outage. While attempting to make repairs to wire, the jail’s backup generators initially failed as it turned off and on a number of times. IPL says this led to an interruption of power at the jail.

Power was restored at the correctional facility a little after 4:30 a.m., IPL said.