Thousands of Texas inmates evacuated from prisons ahead of floods

Thousands of inmates were being evacuated Saturday from three prison facilities in Rosharon, Texas, as the Brazos River there continued to rise under heavy rains from tropical storm Harvey.

The Texas Department of Criminal Justice said that about 4,500 inmates would be transported from the Ramsey, Terrell and Stringfellow units in Rosharon, which is just south of Houston, to other facilities in East Texas.

The prisoners were being transported by bus and accompanied by correctional officers and other staff.

“We’re doing everything we can to make sure everybody’s safe while the evacuation process is being carried out,” said Robert Hurst, a public information officer with the criminal justice department.

He did not say where the prisoners would be taken, or how long the evacuation process might last.

While away from Rosharon, the prisoners will “not be available for visits at the designated receiving units, but will have the ability to use the offender telephone system,” the criminal justice department said.

Harvey made landfall in Texas as a Category 4 hurricane Friday night. It was downgraded to a tropical storm Saturday, but heavy rains and serious flooding are expected in the state’s southeast.

The three facilities were also evacuated in May and June last year, when the same river flooded under heavy rainfall.