Here’s what we know about the Sunday ‘incident’ at McCormick prison

McCORMICK, S.C. (WRDW/WAGT) - We’re still awaiting more information Monday morning after what South Carolina Department of Corrections officials called an “incident” at McCormick Correctional Institution on Sunday.

Early word from corrections officials say the incident took place around 6 p.m. when a corrections office was locked in a cell and several inmates made it out of their dorms and into an interior prison yard.

None, however, made it past the institution’s fence.

All inmates were soon ed for and the scene was quickly cleared.

The incident caused the McCormick County Sheriff’s Office to post a brief statement on their Facebook page, saying that rumors of a prison escape were unfounded.

“McCormick County Deputies were dispatched to an incident at the McCormick Correctional Center at 6:43 pm. Deputies and Police Officers from the Town of McCormick set up a perimeter around the facility. There were no incidents to report on the perimeter. Rumors of prisoners escaping are unfounded. The prison is secured and the community is completely safe at this time,” they said.

The McCormick County Emergency Services Division of Emergency Management also posted on Facebook around 9 p.m. Sunday, saying “There is a situation occurring at McCormick Corrections. It is a SCDC Facility. Local and State Law Enforcement has a perimeter established around the institution. All issues are inside the facility.”

No word on any injuries inside the facility.