Ariz. prison fight leaves 11 injured

Number of inmates, weapons involved still unknown

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Associated Press

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Officer's overlooking the yard at the Arizona State Prison Complex - Lewis (AP photo)

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BUCKEYE, Ariz. — Eleven inmates at an Arizona prison were injured after a fight broke out at a complex west of Phoenix Saturday afternoon, a state Department of Corrections spokesman said.

One inmate was airlifted to an area hospital, four were taken by ambulance and another six were taken offsite by corrections department staff, spokesman Barrett Marson said.

The fight started between two inmates at the Lewis prison complex after lunch, and mushroomed to include an unknown number of inmates, he said.

Weapons were involved in the fight, but Marson declined to say what type they were or how many were used.

Marson said he didn't know the extent of the prisoners' injuries.

The prison complex about 35 miles west of Phoenix also was the site of a fight among more than 100 inmates that injured 7 inmates and a corrections officer in November.

Saturday's fight occurred in a unit that houses about 800 inmates who represent a high risk to public safety, according to a corrections department Web site. The unit has been placed on lockdown.