PRISON ESCAPES PROMPT URGENT ACTION

THe escape of 25 dangerous prisoners from police holding cells in northern KwaZulu Natal on Tuesday has prompted an urgent review of police holding facilities in the region. Provincial police commissioner Chris Serfontein has ordered all police stations with high escape rates to immediately compile reports explaining the phenomena. The first 17 prisoners escaped from the Esikhaweni police station near Empangeni in the Umfolozi region on Tuesday morning by forcing open the ventilation shafts in their cells. The suspects were awaiting trial for crimes ranging from murder to rape and armed robbery. Another eight prisoners escaped from the KwaNsane police station near Mathubathuba later on Tuesday morning by cutting a hole into their cell roof and fleeing into surrounding thick bush on foot.