The injuries were minor, prison officials said.

According to information released by Selma Garcia, executive assistant to the warden, the situation started with a fight among the inmates around 9:30 p.m.

“A fight between inmates occurred inside a housing unit,” Garcia said. “The staff immediately restrained all inmates that were involved without further incident.

“As a result, two staff members sustained minor injuries and were treated at a local hospital and released. One inmate sustained minor injuries that required outside medical attention and was returned to the institution. An investigation into the incident continues.”

Garcia said both of the employees injured in the altercation were correctional officers, and were treated at the emergency room at Scenic Mountain Medical Center. She said there was no damage to the housing unit at FCI Big Spring.

As for the cause of the fight, Garcia said it's too early to tell.

“We're still gathering intelligence, but we don't have a motive at this time,” said Garcia. “The fight was contained pretty quickly, and we're still looking into it. However, it's really too early to speculate at this point.”

Contact Staff Writer Thomas Jenkins at 263-7331 ext. 232 or by e-mail at This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it