Seven inmates dead and 17 injured in deadliest US prison riot in 25 years

Seven inmates were killed – from top row from left: Corey Scott, Eddie Casey Gaskins, Raymond Angelo Scott and Damonte Rivera; bottom row from left, Michael Milledge, Cornelius McClary and Joshua Jenkins. (Picture: AP)

Seven inmates are dead and 17 are injured after the  worst US prison riot for 25 years.

Prisoners  armed with homemade knives  fought each other for about seven hours over territory and money at the Lee Correctional Institution in Bishopville, South Carolina.

An inmate who witnessed the violence said bodies were “literally stacked on top of each other”.

At least 17 prisoners were seriously injured, South Carolina prisons chief Bryan Stirling said.

The first fight started in a dorm at about 7.15pm on Sunday and appeared to be contained before violence suddenly started in two other dorms.

Communication via mobile phones helped stir up the trouble, and state officials have since urged the federal government to change the law and allow them to block the signals from prisoners’ phones.