Up to 60 inmates and six prisoner officers were involved in a brawl at the Midlands Prison, Portlaoise, it has been reported.
According to the Irish Sun, six of the prisoners and two of the officers required medical attention and the facility was shut down following the incident on Sunday.
The paper reports that the row was between two rival prison gangs and began when two prisoners started fighting.
The scrap spiralled out of control when members of each of the gangs joined in and escalated to a 60-man brawl.
Inmates broke tables, chairs, and plates during the brawl.
The prison was put on lock-down as a result of the violence.
Prison officers on site acted quickly to deescalate the fight and bring the incident to an end.
However, in their attempts to break the scuffle up six officers suffered injuries and two prisoners were injured during the tussle.
One officer suffered a dislocated shoulder, while another required stitches following their brave efforts to stop the clash.
All eight people were brought to hospital for treatment for their injuries when order was restored.
A spokesman for the Irish Prison Services, in a statement to the Irish Sun, said: “There was an incident in the prison between two rival factions.
“There was a fight between two prisoners which escalated into a large number of prisoners started fighting but the prison officers responded to it very quickly and it was brought to a quick conclusion by the prison staff that was on site.
“Unfortunately as a result of the incident six officers did receive injures and received medical attention. Two prisoners were also injured during the incident.”
The nature or severity of the others injured is not known at this time.
The incident is currently under investigation by the Prison Service and Gardai have been made aware of it.
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