Gangs attack police station, prison in central Haiti town, more than 500 inmates escape

Members of the powerful gang coalition Viv Ansanm stormed a prison in Haiti on Monday, releasing more than 500 inmates after setting fire to a police substation during a day of panic in the central region of the country that sent residents, patients and staff at one of the biggest hospitals fleeing.

Haiti National Police spokesman Lionel Lazarre, who confirmed the attack to the Miami Herald, said gangs began their attack on Sunday night in Mirebalais, a rural town not far from Haiti’s border with the Dominican Republic.

“They burned part of the police station and several disabled cars in the police station yard,” he said. “All of the prisoners left.” Videos shared on social media showed panicked residents running through the streets, carrying belongings on their heads. Others were wading through a river to get away from the gunfire.

Read more: Miami Herald