Medium security prison break reveals workforce woes, says opposition

‘A very real risk’: Five inmates escaped a medium security area by breaking through a wall at Alice Springs Correctional Centre, with the opposition levelling blame at one critical issue.

A prison break at Alice Springs Correctional Centre that involved five medium security inmates escaping their block is a symptom of the problems plaguing Northern Territory corrections, the opposition has claimed.

About 2.30am on Friday, the group of men broke through a wall of the G block into a different area of the prison.

A spokesman for the Attorney-General and Justice Department confirmed there was no breach of the secure perimeter of the correctional centre and the escaped prisoners were recaptured by staff onsite.

“All prisoners have been accounted for and the prison remains secure. There were no injuries to officers or prisoners,” a department spokesman said.

Opposition justice minister Steve Edgington said the prison escape posed “a very real risk”. Picture: Amos Aikman.

Opposition justice spokesman Steve Edgington said the danger of the situation should not be underestimated.

“Their escape posed a very real risk for staff and other prisoners,” Mr Edgington said.

“They had access to staff areas where no unsupervised prisoners should be able to go.”

Mr Edgington said concerns about the structural integrity of maximum security were known but not talked about publicly due to fears of copycat escape attempts.

“The problem is made worse when the prison is severely understaffed like it has been for a long time,” he said.

United Workers Union NT secretary Erina Early said while staffing was an issue in the prison, the G block had been fully staffed the night of the breakout.

Ms Early argued more programs for inmates, reducing recidivist offending, addressing overcrowding and boosting staff numbers would help make prisons safer.

“Corrections do need a lot more resources and we’re hoping that the government will deliver that in the next budget,” she said.

Alice Springs Correctional Centre is currently at capacity with 650 inmates, with overflow prisoners being kept in police watch houses for extended periods.

NT Police and NT Correctional Services have launched an investigation into the escape.

Ms Early said most escapes happened from low security residential areas and described the incident as “very odd”.

“We don’t know how it happened … prisoners have a lot of time on their hands,” she said.