Meanwhile, Tampa Bay area prisoners return to jails after being evacuated last week.
By MELIA BOWIE
Published August 18, 2004
More than 300 prison inmates from around the state are on their way to southwest Florida to clear roads, remove debris and clean up communities devastated by Hurricane Charley.
They are joined by another 115 inmates originally based in jails and work camps in the worst-hit areas, creating a sizeable labor force at a critical time.
"We're getting a lot of requests for inmates" from emergency officials, said Sterling Ivey, spokesman for the Florida Department of Corrections in Tallahassee.
Many are coming from prisons in Gainesville and Jacksonville, while others are making their way from Miami.
"They're the lowest custody inmates that we have," Ivey said of the selected force. "Generally they're within a year or two of release" and are supervised at a ratio of one officer per 10 inmates.
State officials said they began busing inmates to Charlotte, Hardee and De Soto counties on Sunday. Among the buildings hit by the storm: Charlotte Correctional Institution in Punta Gorda - home to more than 1,000 minimum- to maximum-security inmates.
Food and supply preparations were made, but no evacuation of the prison was ordered, in part because of sturdy construction and because officials had too little warning when the storm turned.
"We were surprised just like everyone else. There just wasn't much we could do," Ivey said, noting the security issues involved in transporting large numbers of high-risk felons.
"The only evacuations we did there were of work camps and smaller facilities . . . (those) more prone to flooding and debris," he said.
From Fort Myers to Daytona Beach, 12 prisons, jails and work camps were evacuated. Nearly 1,550 prisoners were put on the move by Hurricane Charley, mostly to other state corrections sites.
Hillsborough and Pinellas inmates are not part of the relief effort. Instead, some who were moved last week in preparation for Charley are returning to local jails.
Meanwhile, Ivey said emergency officials in southwest Florida are now directing the influx of inmate labor to local sites. The prisoners will remain until the end of the week, when "we will reassess the need," he said.
Those trying to reach inmates or find visitation times can call 1-877-822-1987.
