The Brooklyn Detention Center is back



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"Staff is working to restore normal operations of the facility," the statement said.

Many inmates spent the weekend sitting in dark, icy cells due to a blackout, according to New York City's Federal Defenders director David Patton and a representative of the union representing the workers of the establishment.

The current recovery comes after New York Governor Andrew Cuomo called on the Justice Department to immediately investigate the circumstances surrounding the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn, where a blackout has occurred. left detainees without heat or lighting in recent days.

"Disturbing reports surfaced that the federal government would have left more than a thousand prisoners without heat, hot water or electricity during the negative temperatures at the Brooklyn Metropolitan Detention Center," Cuomo said. a statement.

"Prisoners in New York are human beings, let's treat them that way," said Cuomo.

A representative from the United States who visited the facility on Saturday told CNN affiliate WPIX that the temperature was as low as 49 degrees in the detention center.

"The heat is sporadic and uneven," Nydia Velázquez told the station. The situation had been grueling for more than a day, Patton said.

"The lights are out, no light in the cells, all locked since Thursday night, it lasts at least 36 hours, and when the sun goes down, it is dark. can not read the instructions regarding drugs, "said Patton.

Protesters gathered outside the building on Saturday. Some carried placards stating "Close it", "MDC Torture".

Gabriel Pedreira, an organizer of the local branch of the American Federation of Government Employees, said he was concerned about the health and safety of employees, who are "forced to work in very cold weather". 19659002] Medical personnel checked the detainees at the facility and "continue to periodically check every prisoner, every detainee, and continue to provide the necessary medications and meet the medical needs of the prison population," according to a statement from Federal Office of Prisons.

A Power Outage Occurred in Cold Weather

Earlier, Pedreira stated that federal prison officers worked under hats, coats, and scarves.

The National Meteorological Service We said that temperatures this week were nocturnal among teenagers. On Sunday, the minimum will be around 30 degrees and the maximum should be in the lower half of the quarantine. The low Monday morning will be in the upper 30s.

Earlier in the day, New York Mayor Bill de Blasio said on Twitter that the city was sending hundreds of blankets and handwarmers in the detention center and that generators would be made available.

"We told the Federal Bureau of Prisons that the supplies would arrive," said the mayor.

The Prisons Office said that the installation had caught fire in the room, housing electrical switches and that one of the two buildings blackout. A new electrical panel has been installed but crews need to restore power.

The buildings are equipped with emergency lighting, said spokeswoman Valery Logan. She added that detainees had hot water in their sinks and showers.

Bob McGee, spokesman for the Electricity Company Con Edison, said he was ready to restore power once the repairs were completed.

"It is unacceptable, illegal, and inhumane to detain people without basic services, access to counseling or medical care," said New York Attorney General Letitia A. James, in a statement. a statement. "The conditions reported to the Metropolitan Detention Center are appalling, prisoners and detainees have rights, and these rights must be respected.Our office is in contact with legal service providers and inmate lawyers and is closely monitoring this situation. extremely worrying. "

The center is home to 1,654 inmates. According to the BOP website, "these (facilities) are institutions with special missions, such as the detention of offenders awaiting trial, the treatment of prisoners with serious or chronic medical conditions."

[19659007] Deanna Hackney, CNN's Julia Jones, Elizabeth Joseph and Eric Levenson contributed to this article.

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