LINK CHANGE/ NYTIMES/ A huge fire broke out in Santiago's overcrowded San Miguel prison early Wednesday, killing 81 inmates and injuring at least 21, including a firefighter.
Firefighters reported that they were alerted to the fire by a call from a cell phone inside the prison and had to work with police to avoid more problems with prisoners all around them.
"They wouldn't let the firefighters come in. The riot police came in first and began to beat us, and later the firefighters came in," said an unidentified prisoner.
The prison held 1,900 prisoners, almost double the number it was designed to hold. President Sebastian Pinera said the prison system is more than 70 percent over capacity and at San Miguel there were only 6 prison guards inside and 26 more stationed outside — “certainly not enough,” he said.
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