Sydney Long Bay Jail: Teargas from riots hits Malabar families
Children are among the Malabar residents who were inadvertently gassed on Monday afternoon after teargas used on inmates at Long Bay Hospital wafted into the surrounding neighbourhood.
NSW
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Teargas fired at inmates after a major riot at Long Bay Jail wafted into neighbouring streets choking passers-by and residents — including an 11-year-old boy — who described a “chemical fog” which caused their eyes and throats to burn.
Prison officers were forced to deploy the gas on Monday after more than 80 inmates, some armed with makeshift weapons, rioted in protest over COVID-19 restrictions that have barred visitors from smuggling drugs into the complex.
A Corrective Services spokeswoman said that two separate drug-related fights broke out in one yard of the hospital wing about midday.
Other inmates began inciting them and blocked guards from getting in to break it up, meaning guards were forced to use tear gas to bring the situation under control.
The chaos then spread to another two yards and officers deployed gas from canisters again.
“Inmates in another two yards then began refusing to obey staff directions. Gas was deployed with officers safely securing those inmates in their cells,” the spokeswoman said.
One inmate was taken to hospital after being bitten by a corrective services dog when he refused to drop a jail-made weapon.
MORE NEWSPrisoners could be seen in aerial footage running from the teargas canisters and lying face down on the ground in the yards, some shielding their faces from the gas as it polluted the air.
Vision from inside the jail yards showed some inmates using what appeared to be clothes to spell out ‘BLM’ — which stands for Black Lives Matter — on the grass but a Corrective Services spokeswoman said was unrelated to the riot.
“There is no indication the unrest was related to the Black Lives Matter protests,” she said.
Tension has been bubbling at the eastern suburbs facility for the past three weeks among inmates angry over COVID-19 restrictions, which has robbed them of personal contact visits, contraband and drugs.
Malabar resident Jon Ludlow, 11, who suffers from asthma, did not expect to be “gassed’ when he was told to go outside by his mum to get some fresh air on Monday.
“I was playing basketball and I heard this screaming starting and then the guards were yelling like, ‘Everyone get against the fence, get down’,” Jon said.
“Then I heard heaps of loud shots, then it started stinking really bad and it hurt my eyes when I was gassed. It gradually got worse and worse and worse. I was really scared and didn’t want to get hurt.”
Jon, who lives on Napier Street, said he saw an older woman with a red nose and eyes streaming, running down the street with her dog that looked like it was “in pain”.
Jon’s mother Belinda Ludlow said she came out and smelt gunpowder, before the chemicals hit.
“It really stung my eyes. They’re still stinging and I can feel it in my nose,” Ms Ludlow said.
“My daughter’s friend was here and she was fully crying. We all ran inside and washed our clothes and eyes. We put on COVID-19 masks we had lying around.
“You know when you have chilli? It’s like that it just hits you and you’re full on crying.
“I can’t imagine what it would have been like getting sprayed close up.”
Ms Ludlow said this was the first time this had happened in the 20 years her family of five had lived near the facility.
“You hear the inmates screaming and guards speaking over the loudspeaker occasionally – but this is the first time we’d been really affected,” she said.
The Public Service Association’s Nicole Jess said officers had no choice but to unleash a large amount of gas to contain warring inmates.
“Officers had to use a large amount of gas in order to contain more than 80 in mates who would have been using weapons like shivs, “she said
“The intel over the last three weeks is that tension has been brewing at the jail among inmates complaining that they’re not allowed visitors, they don’t care so much about visitors, it’s all about not being able to get drugs and contraband into the jail.
“There has been an increase of drug drops for contraband and drugs over fences and toilets. “The row would’ve been sparked over a simple argument, it always is. They’re not getting drugs and they’re angry.
Residents said they could hear loud bangs that sounded like gunshots when the teargas was let off.
Tony Selim, who was working at the nearby Malabar Beach Cafe, said the teargas was affecting people near the beach.
“You can’t breathe at all … it’s really very hard,” Mr Selim said.
Keah Wright, 30, whose house backs onto the jail on Austral St said her one-year-old son Koah was sobbing after going outside after hearing a loud bang.
“We’d just driven home from the park and we heard shooting. We went out the front and smelt something like sparklers. Koah started crying. Then my eyes started watering, It was like the stinging when you cut onions,” she said.
Another nearby resident, Michael Roberts, said the gas caused a chemical fog.
“It sounded like fireworks, and then all of a sudden it took over. You could smell it and it was in your throat,” Mr Roberts said.
“It made my eyes water. I only found out what it was when I watched the news. It was so strong. There was a haze in the air as well.”
James Gibbens, 32, was fixing his brother-in-law’s car outside the Austral St house when his eyes, throat and nose started burning.
“It lasted about a minute, then the second time it happened was really strong so we went inside,” Mr Gibbens said.
“We just heard the inmates inside the prison yelling and screaming. Then the tear gas bullets started.”
The chemicals travelled in the air as far as Malabar Beach.
Amelia Monk’s eyes were tearing up while the three-year-old was playing in the playground about midday at Cromwell Park, her dad Brad Monk said.
“She was rubbing her eyes furiously and then I noticed mine were stinging too,” Mr Monk said.
“I then started sneezing. My eyes started burning. I just thought something was on fire.”
A Corrective Services NSW spokeswoman apologised for the impact of the gas on local residents, who reported trouble breathing, burning eyes and runny noses.
“Corrective Services NSW apologises to any members of the community affected by gas used during the incident,” the spokeswoman said.
“We ask anyone affected to please contact the prison.”