11.   Interior Minister Sanan Kachornprasart said the guards were justified in using guns because they could be charged with negligence if they had failed to prevent the inmates from escaping.

12.   It would not apply to prison guards, however, who are often accused of preventing inmates from seeing doctors.

13.   Soldiers surrounded the jail to prevent inmates from escaping.

14.   The inmates were said to have overpowered panic-stricken guards whose attention was divided between battling the fire and preventing the inmates from escaping.

15.   The warden has since beefed up security to prevent inmates from taking revenge, he added.

16.   Walls were erected at the entrances and guards prevented inmates from going beyond its limits.

17.   He added that prison authorities have already taken steps to check the spread of the epidemic, including preventing inmates from using water and food from outside the prison.

18.   Police prevented seven inmates from escaping, and by Thursday afternoon they had managed to repair the hole.

19.   Power generators were also used to keep the area lit and prevent inmates from escaping under cover of darkness, he added.

20.   The one window was deliberately blocked to prevent inmates from getting fresh air.