LINCOLN- A mattress fire at the Lincoln prison ended up sending 4 people to the hospital, critically low staffing could have played a part in the number of injuries.

The report, from the Inspector General of the Nebraska Correctional System, said a Lincoln Correctional Center housing unit for inmates with mental illnesses or a need to be segregated from others was unattended when an inmate started the Oct. 23, 2021, fire.

"Staff were stretched so thin on the day of this fire that they were unable to provide adequate supervision of an area that houses some of the most troubled and troublesome inmates," the report said. "A fire which could have been noticed and addressed almost immediately instead resulted in serious injuries to inmates and staff."

The state nears the top of prison overcrowding and as the number of prisoners goes up, the staff however did not.

According to the Inspector General's report: Only one staff person was assigned to the 32-bed C1 unit the Saturday of the fire and he had left to get a printout from another staff member.

In an Aug. 8 letter, state Corrections Director Scott Frakes accepted the recommendations about fire safety.

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