Cook County Sheriff Releases Dramatic Video of Inmates Setting Fire to Jail Uniforms

CHICAGO, IL -- The Cook County Sheriff’s Office released dramatic video of the jailhouse fire Saturday evening that sent four correctional officers to the hospital with non-life threatening injuries. Inmates in Cook County Jail’s super maximum security division set fire to their jail uniforms using a homemade wick ignited in a microwave oven in the living unit, according to a statement from the sheriff’s office.

The incident occurred in a tier designated for problematic inmates who engaged in sexual misconduct. The first of two videos released Monday by the Cook County Sheriff shows an inmate walking carrying a burning wad of paper from a smoke-filled room that is off-camera. The inmate sets fire to a dark green jumpsuit. One inmate can be seen hooping and hollering as others begin tossing the dark green uniforms from a second-floor catwalk.

>>> Cook County Jail Guards Hurt When Inmates Use Microwave To Set Uniforms On Fire

In the second video, correctional officers drag the inmates out of the tier onto a patio with a basketball court. Numerous guards can be seen running to the patio where more detainees are removed from the smoke-filled tier. Two officers were transported to an area hospital for smoke exposure, and two more for injuries related to securing the tier. The officers had all been released the next morning and are said to be recovering well.

”This incident is the latest reminder of the exceptionally difficult job performed each and every day by the men and women of the Cook County Sheriff's Office,” a statement from the sheriff’s office read. Watch the video.

Video One - Cook County Jail detainees set fire to jail uniforms. | Cook County Sheriff

Video Two - Cook County Jail guards secure the tier after a small fire was set by inmates. | Cook County Sheriff