An inmate at HMP Bristol was taken to hospital after a fire was lit in a cell in the early hours of this morning.
The prisoner, who has not been named, was taken to hospital after being injured in the blaze, which started at around 12.20am on Monday morning.
Firefighters from two different fire stations rushed to the prison and said they extinguished the blaze with a hose reel, and cleared smoke from the cell block using a positive pressure ventilation fan.
A spokesperson for the Home Office played down the significance of the fire and said the blaze was ‘quickly extinguished by staff’ themselves, rather than it being put out by the firefighters.
A spokesperson for Avon Fire and Rescue service said two crews from Southmead and Temple fire stations were called to a fire at the prison on Cambridge Road in Horfield.
“On arrival, two firefighters in breathing apparatus used one high-pressure hose reel to extinguish the fire and a positive pressure ventilation fan to clear smoke,” he said.
“The cause is thought to be deliberate,” he added.
A spokesperson for the Ministry of Justice confirmed the incident took place.
“A fire in a cell at HMP Bristol was quickly extinguished by staff in the early hours of this morning,” he said.
“A prisoner received treatment in hospital but has since returned to custody,” he added.
The prison has recently been the subject of of a draft report by the HM Inspectorate of Prisons was released a fortnight ago.
Inspectors said the prison had been in special measures for two years and that conditions there would be improved.
Bristol Live understands the incident will be referred to the police.
