Three people were taken to the hospital Saturday morning after inmates started a fire inside the Fulton County Jail, authorities said. Atlanta firefighters responded to the jail about 9 a.m. after inmates set two mattresses on fire, Atlanta fire spokesman Sgt. Cortez Stafford told AJC.com.
The fire was out by the time crews arrived, but one guard suffered from smoke inhalation, he said. The blaze caused relatively minor damage, but there was still heavy smoke when firefighters got there.
Fulton County Sheriff’s Office spokeswoman Tracy Flanagan said the fire started on the seventh floor of the jail and was quickly extinguished by employees.
As a precaution, two employees and an inmate were taken to Grady Memorial Hospital, she said. The fire remains under investigation and no additional details have been released. Authorities have not said how many inmates are responsible for burning the mattresses.