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IQALUIT
No one was hurt and there was no damage after an inmate set a fire in a washroom at the Baffin Correctional Centre on Oct. 20.

A fire set intentionally at the Baffin Correctional Centre by inmates will not lead to charges, according to RCMP. - NNSL file photo

The Iqaluit fire department and RCMP were called to the scene at 9:55 p.m. Police say the fire was set intentionally, but the matter is being dealt with internally at the BCC.

"There was not a riot, but there was a suspicious fire that was set on purpose," media relations officer Sgt. Jimmy Akavak said. "Other media thought there was a riot, but there was not. RCMP was involved just to keep the peace."

Three adult inmates at the medium security prison were taken to the RCMP jail, but no charges were laid and no charges are pending.

"One guy lit a towel or a linen on fire, so the fire department went and we went," said Iqaluit detachment commander Staff Sgt. Roger Tournier. "Any time there's a fire at the BCC, we take it seriously and we attend. We would definitely lay charges if there was damage or if there was an assault, but there was no damage and no injuries."

The Baffin Correctional Centre was designed to hold 40 prisoners, and upgraded to house 56, Justice Minister Keith Peterson told the legislative assembly on Oct. 24. However, the population frequently hits 100, he said, with inmates sleeping on cots in the gymnasium.

"In December 2009, I asked for some assistance to look at renovating, upgrading, or expanding the facility, and asked for $300,000," said Peterson, who is also finance minister. "We got a clear message from the House that investing in prisons in Nunavut is not something that is important. Unfortunately, schools, gymnasiums, and community halls are a high priority. There is limited funding available as well from our capital planning.”

The problem is not going to be resolved any time soon as the federal government's new crime bill will increase the number of inmates across Canada, he said. The opening of a new $40-million prison in Rankin Inlet in the New Year won't make the situation any better, Iqaluit mayor Madeleine Redfern said.

"When the Rankin Inlet jail opens, it will fill within days simply by relocating Nunavut inmates from out of the territory," Redfern said. "With mandatory minimum jail sentences on a number of offences, there will be a lot more people incarcerated all over the country, but already in Nunavut and Iqaluit, we have the highest crime rates. We already send a lot of offenders out of the territory, so as their jails fill up with more people, they will not be able to take more prisoners from Nunavut, and we'll find ourselves in a situation worse than it is today."

Redfern is also concerned about the safety of staff.

"It's been shown that where you have overcrowded situations, tensions are higher, and there's more likelihood of incidents happening like what happened last week," she said. "It can become a dangerous situation when these things escalate."

The justice department is looking into alternatives that will enable corrections officials to safely accommodate increased numbers of prisoners on a temporary basis, Peterson told the legislative assembly, but any solution will require the support of MLAs to approve the funding required.

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