The violence broke out Monday morning (local time) in an institution near the city of Beaumont, according to American media. Four inmates were taken to hospital. Two of them died.
Sources tell the New York Times that the infamous Hispanic gang MS-13 was involved in the Texas incident. Prison authorities would like to prevent rival gangs in multiple prisons from retaliating.
The American prison service Bureau of Prisons hopes with the exceptional measure “to guarantee good order in our institutions.” It is not yet clear how long the lockdown will last. Authorities expect it to be “short-lived.”