Rising Texas Heat Endangers Prison Inmates: Report
Only 30 percent of Texas prison units are fully air-conditioned. So far this year, six inmates and 11 employees have been treated for heat related illnesses.
Landwebs
A report released this week by the Texas A&M University Hazard Reduction and Recovery Center and Texas Prisons Community Advocates has found that many inmates fear dying or falling gravely ill from the increasingly hot Texas weather and believe actions taken by officials to mitigate the dangerous conditions continue to fall short, KWTX reports. Advocates have been highly critical of the lack of air conditioning in the Texas prison system, which has 120,000 inmates. Only 30 percent of Texas prison units are fully air-conditioned. The university report called the procedures in place “inefficient and ineffective,” relying on overworked prison employees to offer help to inmates while suffering through the heat themselves, rather than providing system-wide relief. So far this year, six inmates and 11 employees have been treated for heat related illnesses.
