St. Louis Post-Dispatch
JEFFERSON CITY — Rising floodwaters along the Mississippi River have Illinois prison officials concerned about a breach in the water system serving the 3,000-plus inmate state prison in Chester.
If river levels affect the maximum-security facility’s water service, the state may have to bring in hundreds of portable toilets to serve staff and inmates, officials learned in a conference call Monday.
U.S. Rep. Mike Bost, a Republican from Murphysboro, was among those on the conference call. He said Monday night that there is a concern that 600 inmates may have to be moved into other areas of the prison because of the flooding.
“But, because it appears to be a fast-moving flood, it may not be as bad as the 1993 flood,” Bost said. “We want to be prepared for the worst and hope for the best.”
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