At least 51 people have died and another 30 have been injured after the fire unleashed during a riot in the prison of the city of Tuluá, located in western Colombia, according to the director of the National Penitentiary and Prison Institute (INPEC), General Tito Castellanos. Among the deceased are INPEC prison officials, said Castellanos, who reported that the fire occurred around 1:00 a.m. this Tuesday (local time) after the prisoners set fire to some mattresses in the pavilion. 8 to prevent the agents from stopping the riot.

«There was a call at almost 1:20 in the morning about a possible riot (...).

It is verified that there was a burning of many mattresses, and so far there are about 50 people transferred to care centers, "INPEC reported, according to the Colombian newspaper 'El Tiempo'.

For his part, the outgoing president of Colombia, Iván Duque, has gone to social networks to lament what happened in the Tuluá prison and show his solidarity with the victims. He, in turn, has confirmed that he is in contact with General Castellanos and that he has given instructions to begin investigations to clarify "this terrible situation."

The case is reminiscent of the one that occurred on March 21, 2020 in the famous La Modelo prison in Bogotá, when around twenty prisoners died and more than a hundred were injured as a result of a riot organized to demand protection and prevention measures against the coronavirus. .